


It Was Torture

by Geek_gettin_Bi101



Category: Ao no Exorcist | Blue Exorcist
Genre: Blood and Gore, But he doesn't! I promise!, Hurt Rin, Hurt/Comfort, I can't spell so no judging, I hate Angel, I'm Bad, M/M, My first fic, Nightmares, Not Beta Read, Not following the canon plot, Physical Scarring, Protective Bon, Rated For Violence, Rin almost dies, Rin is clingy, Shima is a good boyfriend, So Angel does something really bad, Tags may be added/may change, Takes place after Satan possessed Yukio, Torture, Tortured Rin, We Die Like Men, Why am I such a horrible person?, Yukio is really pissed, but he's so cute!, he can go die, he doesn't look like a demon though, kill me now, why am I hurting my baby
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-11
Updated: 2019-05-02
Packaged: 2019-10-26 10:37:52
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 15
Words: 38,004
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17744339
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Geek_gettin_Bi101/pseuds/Geek_gettin_Bi101
Summary: In which I am a terrible person and can't believe I actually wrote this. So, here's he Tortured Rin AU no one asked for.His blood-curdling screams filled the air. Six days, it had been six days and he still wasn't anywhere close to getting out of this hell hole. About six days ago, he had been sitting in class, sleeping through another lecture as usual. Oh, how the fates hated him. He couldn't think, could barely breathe through the iron taste of blood in the air. It was pooling beneath him in thick puddles. The red was staining his skin, the warm liquid a stark contrast to the cold metal table beneath him. The blade cut deeper into his flesh, painful spots danced at the edges of his vision. He was going to die here, in a pool of his own blood. He would never get revenge on Satan for killing his father. Never see his friends smiling or enjoying his cooking. What hurt most of all, was the reality that...





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So, this is my first fic ever. I don't know how it will turn out, but hopefully, I'll be able to update sooner. Maybe... but who knows? I'm not entirely sure which way this will go, I get an Idea and let the story take over. Hopefully, it will be good! I'd like to know what you think so please comment or leave Kudos. Thanks a lot! ;3

Yukio glared at his brother as he snored away. Honestly, it was so annoying how he would wake up for nothing. The younger twin growled as he tapped his foot on the ground repeatedly. So far he'd tried everything. Alarm clocks, banging on pots and pans, even screaming at his brother for him to wake. If they weren't the only ones in this dorm, he would have surely awoken the entire building. He glared at Kuro who had been watching with something similar to amusement in his eyes. _That's it!_ Yukio gripped the end of his brother's tail that hung over the edge of his bed and pulled, hard. Rin shot up and cried out in pain. His bright, angry blue eyes turned accusingly to Yukio as he glared daggers sharp enough to kill, “Dammit, Yukio! Why don’t you just bang on some pots next time.”  


“I did, you still didn't budge. Now, get ready, you’re almost late for class.” Yukio instructed with his normal stoic expression as he pulled on his black exorcist jacket, “I have an exorcism I need to take care of. You better be at class in time or I’m giving you extra homework and two weeks of detention.”  


"What!" Rin shouted angrily at his brother before he vanished through the door. _Asshole_ , he thought as he marched down to the kitchen after throwing on his uniform messily. Kuro was perched on the kitchen island, waiting for Rin to give him some food like he did every morning. His cat sidhe had his two tails waving around happily upon seeing him.  


_**Hey, Rin! I heard Yukio yelling at you. What was that about?**_  


Rin chuckled and gently scratched Kuro between the ears, “Oi, he was just trying to wake me up.” Kuro nodded in understanding and Rin quickly began eating the breakfast Ukobach made so as not to tick his brother off if he got to class late. He gently dropped his dishes into the sink and grabbed the Kurikara sword before sauntering to the nearest door he could use the key in.  


He sighed and hunched over upon stepping through the door to the cram school and making his way down the ornately decorated hall. It always confused him when he thought of who actually thought the colors and décor went together. Rin wouldn't be surprised if Mephisto had something to do with it. Scratch that, everything would be pink if Mephisto had anything to do with it. Rin inwardly cringed at the thought. God, no thank you.  


The demon took a deep breath and froze, the air in the hall felt… off, like the world was holding its breath in anticipation. Rin couldn’t shake the feeling that something was going to happen, something bad. Maybe Rin could turn back and hole up in the dorm today. On second thought, he didn't want to test his brother. Besides, it was likely just him over thinking too much. He shook his head to clear his thoughts as he stepped through the classroom door.  


Rin shot a wave at the Kyoto trio, as he called them, before collapsing in his seat next to Shiemi and promptly using his hand as a pillow. The blond haired girl looked at him worriedly. Rin just waved it off and gave her the one worded explanation of, "Shura." She nodded and turned back to the book she was reading. Rin sighed heavily, trying to ignore the aching in his muscles. Training with Shura yesterday had gone until extremely late last night, leaving him with only a few precious hours of sleep. He really hadn't wanted to crawl out of his extremely comfy bed, but he also didn't want to risk Yukio's wrath.  


Rin twisted his back slightly, trying to loosen up his stiff joints. His body was extremely sore and achy, protesting every movement he attempted to make. The demon’s tail stretched out behind him and flicked in agitation. He really had to talk to Yukio about convincing Shura to go easy on him next time. It was like she was trying to kill him. And Rin was 99% sure if he was a normal human, he would have collapsed into a puddle of mush after the first day. That would mean bye-bye to the beautiful world of Assiah.  


Yukio walked through a few minutes later, right on time, as always. He nodded in thanks to Rin, grateful for his brother actually listening for a change. Maybe Rin could actually pay attention today, but the bags under his brother's eyes made it clear to not get his hopes up. The younger twin huffed, knowing that in a few minutes, snores would be replacing the tired sighs coming from Rin.

**POV CHANGE:**

Yukio glared over at his brother for the tenth time in three minutes. Rin had fallen asleep, coming as no surprise to anyone, with his hand propping his head above the table. Yukio rolled his eyes and continued with his lecture, writing important notes on the board and drawing a diagram similar to the one in the book he was holding. He would have to explain everything to Rin back at the dorms later, not that he wanted to. But, he was going to make damn sure his brother wasn’t going to fail and be executed in three months time. That was a big thing on Yukio's list of "Make Sure This Never Happens."  


His attention was, again, diverted by the sound of Shima laughing. Yukio sighed and turned to the distraction, one brown eyebrow arched up high as he turned away from the chalkboard and focused a glare on the fit of giggles in the room. Upon seeing Yukio's look, the pinkette only pointed to Yukio’s older brother as a way to give him an answer. Yukio turned to his brother. Rin’s head was slipping out of the hand holding said appendage above the desk, it didn’t take a genius to figure out what was going to happen if his brother didn’t wake soon.  


An evil smirk grew across the exorcist’s face. He continued on like nothing had, or will, happen, keeping the blue-black mop of hair that was dipping closer and closer to the desk in the corner of his vision. Hopefully, this would serve as a lesson in the future and keep Rin from falling asleep in class. The young teacher could only hope. Though some part of him was whispering how no matter what happened, Rin would always fall asleep in class, and that irked Yukio to no end.  


He sighed, knowing the class wasn't paying attention to a word he said. Looking around the room, he saw that even Izumo seemed slightly intrigued by the entire situation. Shima had even pulled out his phone to film the eventual result, that came as no surprise to the exorcist. Shiemi was shooting Rin worried glances out of the corner of her eyes every few seconds and seemed to be debating whether or not to wake the sleeping demon. Eventually, she shrugged it off and, as they all anticipated, Rin’s head slipped off his hand and collided with the desk both Rin and Shiemi shared. A surprised squawk ripped itself from the older’s throat as he was jarred from his sleep.  


Rin glared around the room at his laughing classmates in turn. Even Izumo was wearing a slight smirk. Rin rubbed his head vigorously to relieve the ache from his temples. Yukio winced slightly as he caught sight of the hair clip that probably jammed into his brother's skin. As the younger twin watched the ordeal, Suguro chuckled and called out to Rin, “That’s what happens when you fall asleep in class, ya Overgrown Blueberry!”  


Rin whipped around so fast that Shiemi squeaked in surprise due to trying to scan his head for any real damage, “Who you callin’ an Overgrown Blueberry, Punk Rock!” Rin shouted back at the multi-color haired teen. Yukio pinched the bridge of his nose as the two started bickering back and forth. Though, he was thankful that it had gone from full on rage and hate to playful banter since they all first met. It had been near impossible to deal with it when the threats had been real and more concerning. He glanced over at Shima and both of them shared a knowing look. They'd talked about how oblivious the two currently bickering were and that they just needed to confess to each other. But, they were too prideful and wouldn't risk being hated by the other if it meant being laughed at and embarrassed.

**POV CHANGE:**

The good mood was interrupted when Shura slide through the door and slammed it shut, locking it with a sutra. All bickering was put on hold as she stormed over to the standing half demon and gripped him by the ear. Rin yelped and tried to pull away from the Senior Exorcist’s death grip, “Would ya shut yewr traps?” She yelled angrily at the blue-haired boy.  
Rin whimpered slightly as her grip tightened, “Let go!” he tried desperately to pull away from the grip she had on his slightly pointed ear. But it only resulted in her grip tightening around the appendage.  


“Nope. Yewr comin’ with me.” She began to forcefully pull the half-demon towards the door, all the while pulling painfully on his ear. Note to self, Rin thought angrily, make sure to point out to the crazy lady. Ears are the second weakest point on a demon like me. The redhead with little fashion sense was about to insert one of her many magic keys into the closed door when it was thrown open by a certain annoying paladin.  


His long, blond hair hung down his back. As he pressed his overly large sword against Shura’s neck, her face twisting in poorly disguised disgust. Rin was finally relieved of the pain the red-haired knight was causing him as he fell to the floor and scrambled back. He reached for his sheathed blade and readied himself to draw it. He knew full well what happened when Shura wore that expression. He had been on the receiving end on multiple occasions. His friends were in battle ready positions behind him, both girls ready to summon their familiar's. And the arias had their fists raised, knowing chants didn't work on humans. It still surprised him how fast they could all jump up and get ready to fight.  


Yukio had both guns pinned on Angel as well as Shura having her purple and green sword at the ready. Angel smirked and lowered his sword nonchalantly like it hadn’t just been threatening Shura a moment ago. Angel smiled with false kindness, “Kirigakure-sempai, you must forgive me. I was startled.”  


“Startled my ass!” Shura retaliated, “What the hell do yew want, Baldy?!”  


"What, you jealous of my hair?" Angel raised a perfect brow before he turned serious again, “I’m here to take Rin, of course.”  


“What?!” The demon in question yelped and promptly stepped closer to his group of friends.  


A warm hand landed on his shoulder as Suguro tried his best to comfort his friend. Angel rolled his eyes at the motion and snapped his fingers. In mere seconds Rin’s friends were pinned to the ground by exorcists that came in through the door. Shura has three people pushing her face first to the ground as Yukio was pinned to a wall. Angel smirked as two grabbed Rin from behind. He tried to kick and punch but nothing landed against flesh. Angel calmly walked through the chaos of fighting and struggling exorcists and exwires alike.  


Rin’s head was pulled to the side painfully as Angel approached Rin with a wicked looking syringe bearing a painfully long needle in hand. Red liquid sloshed around and the muffled shouts of his friends struggling came from behind him.  


The blond was gripping Rin’s blue-black locks, painfully pushing his head to the side harder than before as the exorcists at his side wrapped their meaty arms around the son of Satan to keep him still. The demon squirmed and shouted, “Get away from me, Loreal commercial!”  


If the situation hadn’t been so dire, the others might have laughed. But, they were currently being held back my more exorcists than before that seemed to come out of nowhere. The sharp needle was pressed harshly into his neck. Rin yelped in surprise and pain as he was frozen in his place, remembering a time he was scared to death of shots and wouldn’t let the doctor near him. What he wouldn’t give to go back to simple flu shots right about now.  


As the strange red liquid was transferred into his bloodstream, his heart seemed to slow. His breaths becoming labored until he couldn’t breathe at all and the world began to dim. His blood felt like it was boiling and freezing solid at the same time. He tried to cry out, but his throat was clenching up in protest. The last thing he remembered was his knees buckling and his head colliding with the hard wooden floor. A shout sounded from one of his friends, but It sounded miles away, “Okumura!” He wished he could replay the sweet voice again. Even if I was the last thing he’d ever do.

**POV CHANGE:**

Bon watched his friend fall to the ground. He cried out for him, wishing he could rewind the day and keep Rin at his dorms, keep him safe. He struggled against the exorcist that currently gripped him firmly around the waist. He was kicking the air, trying to loosen the grip around his waist. Bon turned his attention back to the jackass that was the so-called “paladin.”  


“What did you do to him!” Bon roared in pure rage. Rin’s tail was limp, not so much as a twitch coursing through it. That scared him immensely, he’d never seen the demon so still, not even when he was unconscious or sleeping.  


Bon struggled again, prepared to punch the guy behind him to death. Shiemi had tears coursing down her face. Izumo’s face was twisted in shock and fear for her friend. Koneko and Shima were both frozen in their place. As Shura was shouting curses that could make a sailor’s ears bleed.  


Arthur chuckled like nothing happened as he nudged the demon with his foot, “Oh, don’t worry. He’s not dead… yet.” With that, he grabbed Rin and hoisted him over his shoulder and carried him out the room and some of the exorcists followed, promptly disappearing into the dark hall. After a few minutes, the exorcists left behind let go. The shock on their faces was something no one expected. They all looked like they just came out of a daze.  


“What just happened?” One whispered. That’s when Bon snapped. He whirled around on the exorcists behind him and punched them in the nose. The sickening crack of cartilage only fueled the fire coursing through his veins further.  


The other men and woman tried to run but were cut off by a very pissed off Shura clocking them on the head with the hilt of her sword. Everyone was silent, staring at the pile of unconscious bodies. Suguro’s attention was ripped from the open doorway he was having a glaring match with when a low growl echoed across the room.  


Whipping around to the noise, they were met with a sight they never thought they’d see. Their normally calm and stoic faced teacher was shaking with pure anger. Shima quickly stationed himself in front of his angered boyfriend and placed his hands on the brunette’s shoulders.  


“I’m gonna kill that son of a bitch!” Yukio growled. Shiemi flinched at the venomous tone dripping from their teacher’s mouth.  


Shima nodded in agreement, “And we will. But you need to calm down.”  


“I am calm.” He sneered in a very uncalm way.  


“Really. I think you missed the lying train ‘cause you suck at it.” Shima gently lifted his hands off Yukio’s shoulders after a moment of silence. That was probably a bad idea seeing how another angered growl ripped itself from Yukio’s throat as he whipped around and punched the wall. Creating yet another large crack similar to the one Rin made when they were cleaning out Coal Tars.  


The pink haired monk put his hands on his hips, waiting for Yukio to turn away from the wall and back to the exwires. When he finally did, the pinkette sighed and hugged their teacher gently, “You done yet?”  


Yukio’s arms hung limply at his sides as he rested his head on Shima’s shoulder. A few moments passed without a single word uttered, until finally, the younger twin nodded slightly, “Yeah. I’m good now.”  


Shiemi bit her lip and gazed around the room now that their teacher was somewhat calmed, “So, I guess class is over?”  


Yukio nodded and without looking up or moving said, “Yes. I’m gonna go see what the Grigori wanted this time and why they did this.”  


“Way ahead of yew, Spotty-Four-Eyes.” Shura sauntered out the room, using one of her keys, “I’ll meet yew at the dorm!” She shot over her shoulder before disappearing through the door.  


On the way back to the building, every exorcist they encountered earned a murderous glare from the twin in front of them. And an apologetic look from Shiemi. Konekomaru sighed after watching yet another exorcist walk away briskly, “Do you think they’ll be alright?” He asked to no one in particular.  


Shiemi perked up and stated, “I hope so! I don’t think I’ve ever seen Yuki so mad! And Rin…” Her voice was chipper as ever but held a slightly baffled tone. Suguro really couldn’t blame her. One of her friends was just kidnapped by the Grigori and the other was currently going through every possible way he could kill the paladin that would make it hurt.  


“Maybe it’s because he’s emotionless.” Izumo murmured from behind the group.  


Bon stopped in his tracks and turned to the purple haired girl angrily, “Do you always have to criticize people?!” His fists clenched tightly as his nails dug into his palms.  


The girl’s face fell as she looked down at her feet slightly, “You don’t understand.” Ryuji huffed in disbelief and stormed the rest of the way to the Okumura’s dorm, not allowing Izumo to come up with a valid excuse.  


Kuro was walking past the door when they walked in. He scanned the group in confusion, trying to find his master. “Angel took Rin.” Bon supplied when the cat sidhe cocked his head to the side after a few moments of not finding the demon boy. The cat’s eyes went wide as he scampered in the general direction of the kitchen, likely to tell Ukobach.


	2. Chapter 2

Rin came to slowly. Blinding white lights flashed across his vision painfully. He attempted to sit up and take in his surroundings, but something pinched around his wrists and ankles. Swiveling his head back and forth, he found that nothing looked familiar. What even happened? He remembered waking up this morning, or was it last? Falling asleep in class as usual. Than the she-demon waltzed in and… _oh shit!_  


The demon struggled against the restraints with more purpose than before. The cool metal bands rubbed against his bare skin, he already knew he’d have angry red cuts in the areas around the tight metal. Rin attempted to flick his tail around. He learned that if he focused enough, he could use it as a blade and even bash someone’s skull in. Again, no such luck. It’s almost like his tail has been numbed, making it impossible to move.  


Clipped footsteps caught his attention as a looming figure approached the hard table Rin was strapped to. Long blond hair swept down the figures back, partially covering the obnoxious wings that he bore.  


“Angel,” Rin growled. He’d always hated the paladin, but this took it to a whole new level, “get me out of here.”  


The man in question bent down and cooed gently as soft hands ran down Rin’s cheeks and neck, “And what fun would that be?” The honey coated words sent uncomfortable shivers down Rin’s spine along with the touches across his pale skin. The demon bit at the hand as it ventured closer to his mouth. The blond freak show hissed and ripped his hand away.  


“Hands off, Bastard!” Rin sneered, “or next time I won’t miss.”  


Angel tsk’d like he was scolding a little kid who was caught with their hands in the cookie jar, “Promises, promises. It wouldn’t feel too good on your tongue if you did.” Rin arched an eyebrow, clearly unamused by the exorcist standing above him. “I just soaked myself in some holy water, wouldn’t want to burn that beautiful mouth of yours.”  


“I’m sure the water wouldn’t be too ‘holy’ if you bathed in it, Baldy.”  


A scowl painted itself across the paladin’s face, “You’ve got some nerve throwing around insults like that with the position you’re in.”  


“Oh, yeah? And what’s that?” Rin glared hauntingly at the man as he gripped the edge of the table and tilted it so it was almost like he was standing, almost.  


Angel was watching him closely as his cerulean blue eyes widened in fear. Sitting in front of him was a harmless looking table, that is until you looked at what it was holding. The edges were raised a few inches, allowing water to fill the middle. And if Rin’s luck was as bad as it had been, he was willing to bet it was Holy Water. Knives, daggers, and other wicked looking tools glimmered under the surface of the water, taunting the son of Satan.  


Directly next to the Holy Water table, a smaller table sat with syringes. Each containing the same red liquid from the classroom. Two pairs of shackles hung against the concrete wall. The lowest pair hanging a good foot above the tiled ground.  


Rin swallowed down the sick feeling crawling up his throat. “You like it?” Angel ran his hand lovingly across the clear surface of the water, “it’s my own personal collection. I found that weapons soaked in Holy Water make demons suffer way more than our traditional weapons and Holy Water alone would.”  


Rin’s gaze shifted back to the syringes. The blond caught his gaze and wandered over to the red liquids before gripping the glass in his hand, “What is that?” Rin growled. He recalled what it had done to him. Having the ability to knock out a demon of his power for… however long he was out. Maybe a day?  


“Oh, this little thing? It’s nothing special, but it does a number on demons. The Leviathan’s blood alone knocked you out for almost two days. I’m eager to see what would happen if I give you this,” Two days?! He was out of two days, his friends were probably worried sick. And his brother, oh god. Yukio was going to try killing anything and everything that had anything to do with his kidnapping. “It’s a special concoction I whipped up. Leviathan's blood, some triple blessed holy water, and some hellfire. I call it Red Liquor. Thanks for that last ingredient by the way.”  


Rin was going to be sick. A demon’s blood was in his bloodstream along with Holy Water and his own flames? No wonder his blood felt like it was burning him from the inside out, but that still didn’t explain the freezing cold. Maybe his flames were trying to heal him?  


“What do you want from me?” Rin growled. He’d heard of kidnapping, it mostly happened for information or money. He didn’t have any information, and the blond was filthy rich. And Angel most likely knew that, so why?  


“I want,” The Exorcist leaned closer to Rin. Giving the illusion that they were standing in front of each other, “for you to suffer. I’ve had it with you being free to waltz around Assiah like a human. They should be treating you like the demon you are.”  


Rin scoffed, “Sure, waltz around freely. Let me guess, the Grigori put you up to this? Or maybe the Vatican?”  


Angel threw his head back and laughed, “They have nothing to do with this. They don’t know anything about it. They are in the dark, as always.”  


Rin’s eyebrows screwed together in confusion, “The exorcists-”  


Angel was quick to interrupt him, “Some were brainwashed. The ones in this building had the same thoughts as me and agreed with what I was saying.” He began to walk around the standing table, Weaving in and out of Rin’s line of sight, “after I’m done with you, the Grigori will thank me. I’m doing them a favor they don’t even realize they want.”  


Rin tried to shift to look at the insane man that just ducked out of view, “You’re insane!”  


“Wrong!” Arthur’s face popped up next to the demon’s, startling the latter. A scary Cheshire grin spread across the man’s face, “I’m the only sane person here! Everyone will see that once I’m done with you.”  


“What are you going to do to me?” Rin said, tilting himself as far away from the paladin as the restraints allowed him.  


The grin on his face spread farther as he waltzed to the water covered table. His blue, almost grey, eyes scanned the gleaming metals below the surface. His eyes brightened slightly and Rin knew he was so screwed. Angel’s pale hand dipped below the water’s surface and reemerged with what looked like a… whip.  


Rin’s eyes widened to the size of dinner plates. Angel motioned to a point behind him, and judging from the heavy steps, they were exorcists. Once within his line of sight, he was able to scan them. One was obviously a knight if the swords across his back were anything to tell. And the other was a tamer, a Byakko similar to Izumo’s except for the black fur followed the woman.  


The half-demon watched them warily with piercing blue eyes as Angel stepped forward with a cup of the Red Liquor, “Open up.”  


Rin bit his lip and scowled in protest. Angel sighed and nodded to the knight, who promptly unsheathed one of his swords and jammed it into Rin’s leg. He yelped in pain, that was all the time Angel needed as he poured the burning red drink into his open mouth. He tried to spit it out, but his body was seizing badly.  


He was burning from the inside, his blood was on fire. He could feel the liquid crawling angrily down his throat. He wanted to cry, to scream. His mind was screaming at him.  


**Kill me! Kill me! KILL ME!**  


His flames were taking over, trying to sooth the blinding pain, but they only served to make it worse. He was being ripped apart, his ears were popping from the screams. Where were they coming from? They needed to stop! His back arched, trying to get him away from the _pain_.  


There were hands on his body, searing, white-hot _hands_. He was trembling. He felt like he had just swallowed a burning sword made of holy water. God, please make it _stop_! Who’s screaming? Is that him?!  


Rough metal was clamped tightly around his wrists. He was hanging limply. A thick, warm liquid was pouring out of his mouth and dropping to the floor. He was vaguely aware of his nose bleeding and too thick tears streaming down his face.  


The pain began to subside and he was able to focus more. The blurry shapes took the form of the grinning exorcists. Angel smirked devilishly, “I knew Red Liquor would hurt, but I wasn’t expecting that. Looks like I should use that more often. Your screams are quite pretty, would you like another dose?”  


Rin groaned in pain. His vision was slightly red, was he crying blood?! He glared as best he could at the people in front of him. Which wasn’t much, he felt exhausted. He just wanted to curl up in a corner and never come out, “G-go to… Hell.” He panted, just those three words left him out of breath.  


The tamer cackled maniacally, “You were right, he sure it is stubborn,” She stepped closer, Rin wanted nothing more than to kick at her, but the damn shackles were keeping him firmly in place. The tamer’s Byakko spoke in the half demon’s head.  


**_I’m sorry, my prince. I don’t want to-_**  


Rin shook his head and looked at the fox-like demon. His expression conveying for the Byakko to stop, that it wasn’t her fault. She nodded slightly and thought gently, like a mother speaking to her baby.  


**_I’ll do everything I can to get you out of here alive._** Her head bowed slightly before going back to be stone-faced and unseeing.  


The tamer stepped back, out of the way for Angel to step forward with the dripped wet whip. Rin gulped uncertainty, that was really going to hurt. For a few moments, Angel seemed to study the blue haired demon before he dropped the whip back into the shallow pool of water.  


Rin sighed in relief. That enlightened feeling was soon snuffed out when his hands reemerged with two wicked looking daggers. Angel wasted no time in using the blades to cut open the white shirt Rin wore for school, leaving the demon bare-chested. He wasn’t overly thrilled over having only his pants on, but it was better than nothing. His bare feet just barely skimmed the cold ground, causing his toes to curl.  


Angel scanned Rin’s pale chest before landing on his bicep. A purely wicked grin stretched across his face before he reached up and pulled his arm down to make it easier for the paladin to reach, “I think, I want to leave you with something you can never get rid of. Something that you can’t convince yourself is a normal scar.  


The sharp point of the blade punctured the demon’s soft skin, carving delicate words into his bicep. A pained gasp tore itself from Rin’s throat as he tried to bite his lip against the pain. He could taste iron on his tongue, but he didn’t care. Anything to distract him from the burning in his arm.  


His skin was sizzling and angry red. A soft whimper escaped his clasped lips as Angel finally stepped back from carving into the skin. Rin didn’t want to look, he knew something was written across his skin. He focused with all his might for his flames to _heal him!_  


The blue-haired boy yelped when it only felt like it was getting worse. Was his skin ripping farther apart? “I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” He turned to Angel. The blond exorcist had a certain gleam in his grey eyes that made Rin cringe, “Red Liquor reverses your healing abilities until it’s out of your system. But, from the looks of it, even your flames don’t remove scars.” Rin knew he was talking about the scars across his body from previous battles that never truly healed.  


Rin winced as another burning spasm coursed through his arm. He turned his head slightly and what he saw horrified him. He knew Angel had carved something into his skin, but not this! He read it multiple times to make absolutely sure he was right.  


**MURDERER**  


His eyes widened when his brain finally processed that it wasn’t going away. Soft tears filled his eyes, but he refused to let them spill. Instead, he turned to the three adults in front of him, “Is that all you got?” He taunted weakly.  


Angel’s face darkened, his smile twisting into a sneer. His eyes flashed dangerously and a shadow crossed his face. Then it was gone, so fast that Rin wondered if he had just imagined it, “Far from it, Halfling,” He twisted to look at the two exorcists accompanying him, “Leave us.”  


“But-”  


“Leave.” The shadow was back. Both exorcists stiffened and walked out of the room. It was clear they weren’t the least bit thrilled at the fact that they were going to miss Rin suffering. But they obliged nonetheless.  


The tamer’s Byakko sent a worried glance toward Rin and a whispered in his mind, _**I’ll try to come back later to check on you. Don’t lose hope.**_  


He nodded and watched the black Byakko with violet eyes slip through the open door before it was locked from the outside. Cerulean blue eyes met grey as the owner of the latter spoke darkly, “Any last words before you scream yourself raw?”  


The tip of the blade pressed against his skin, burning it slightly. Rin hissed before growling out, “I can’t wait to rip your heart from your chest.”  


The threatening words were soon replaced by cries of pain as burning blades were dragged across his chest, his legs, his back. But, he refused to give Arthur the satisfaction of his screams. Too soon Angel seemed to grow bored of little results of suffering. He tossed the blades into the table carelessly before gripping the handle of the whip again, “Let’s have some fun, shall we?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please don't hate me! Sorry for the cliffhanger. Next time you see Rin, it will be more descriptive and hopefully not as vague. Comments and Kudos are deeply appreciated!! Thank you to anyone reading for giving me a chance.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ... Why the hell am I doing this? That's all, just... why?

Suguro was sitting at one of the tables in the Okumura’s dorm with the other exwires. They hadn’t bothered to go to their own, knowing they wouldn’t rest until they found Rin. They’d been pouring over maps for the past two days. After Shura came back from the Grigori and Vatican with the news that they didn’t order anything on Rin, they ruled out most to the buildings owned by the exorcists. 

Yukio had even gone to the police to have them put a search up. So far, they kept turning up empty-handed. Suguro sighed again and scanned the group. Shiemi was so tired and worried she was crying. Shura was going back and forth from places they thought Rin might be, then coming back with the shake of her head and grabbing the next address. 

As if summoned through thought, the red-haired she-demon stumbled through the door. They all perked up slightly. She just shook her head and they all turned glumly back to the papers spread across the table. She grabbed another address from the short stack of note cards. But, before she could walk through the door again, Bon jumped up and chucked his book across the kitchen in a fit of rage. 

He seethed for a moment before running his hand through his hair roughly. Taking a deep breath, he stormed down the hall to the bathroom. He needed to run his head under some water, hopefully, that would clear his thoughts. Bon rested his hands on the sides of one of the sinks. He sighed and cupped his hands under the running water before splashing it against his face. 

It had been two days since Rin was taken. They were all worried and hadn’t gotten more than an hour of sleep _total_. Bon wished they could teleport to where Rin was so bad. He couldn’t imagine what that bastard Angel was doing to their friend. 

Suguro glanced at himself in the mirror and flinched. Dark bags hung under his tired eyes. His hair was messy and knotted from running his fingers through it too many times. They needed another way to find Rin that didn’t involve going to every warehouse and factory within the city that wasn't run by the Grigori. 

He’d seen movies about cops tracking down people that had been kidnapped through many means. Especially when the kidnapper called for a ransom and they tracked the cell signal. Like a lightbulb went off, Suguro lit up and bolted out of the room. 

Shura was just grabbing a new address when he slammed his hand against the table, startling everyone around it, “I have an idea!” He announced loudly. 

Shura arched a tired eyebrow at how happy the exwire looked. He really thought this would work, “‘kay, what is it?” 

“We can track his cell signal to his exact location!” Bon was practically bouncing from the excitement of the possibility of finding his friend. 

Bon watched everyone's expressions. Yukio’s lips parted as he lowered his head painfully to the table, “I’m so stupid! Why didn’t I _think_ of that?” 

“Don’t take it personally, Yukio,” Koneko yawned tiredly, “Bon is a sucker for police movies. I’m just surprised he didn’t think of it sooner.” 

“Then let’s go!” Shiemi squealed. 

Shura huffed and examined their tired faces, “As much as I would like to go right now, yew won’t do Rin much help if yewr all dead tired. Y’all need to sleep a full night before we go anywhere.” 

“What?!” Suguro squawked. 

“Yew heard me. If I know Angel, he’ll have a shit ton of back up there. Yew ain’t gonna get past them if yewr running on fumes,” The redhead pointed to the door leading to the multiple dorms, “bed. Now!” She glared at the group as the trudged upstairs like a bunch of zombies. Kuro looked at her before venturing up to join Yukio. Hopefully, the cat would make sure the younger twin slept for a few hours. 

Shura sighed, knowing she’d need to get some sleep herself as she trudged up the stairs. She could only hope Rin could hold out long enough for them to rest. Though, she knew Angel. He wasn’t the torture type. Then again, he also didn’t kidnap. Maybe Shura didn’t know the paladin as well as she thought. 

*** 

As the whip cracked through the air and connected against Rin’s already bloody skin, again. His back arched as he screamed. His throat was raw and bloody from the long hours of painful injuries. He’d been whipped, burned, and cut with all assortment of weapons. He currently couldn’t see through his right eye after Angel used a red hot dagger and drug it all the way down the right side of his cheek and neck. 

He’d given up on holding his screams, it took too much energy out of him. Instead, he learned to listen and watch through blurry eyes for the rhythm. To brace himself for the venom bite of the leather or cold piercing pain of the blades. To ignore the loose flaps of skin. 

Hand raised. Muscles tense. The air whirls as the whip cracked down. Scream through the painful ripping of your skin as it rips through already blood filled scars. The leather-wrapped painfully around his tail, leaving furless spots of pink and blossoms of red. 

His legs tensed painfully around the metal daggers embedded in his skin that had never been removed. Rin panted as the whip left his skin, causing more blood to flow. The amount of blood on the floor caused his eyes to widen. He couldn’t heal himself, and that was a shit ton of blood, even for a demon. 

Rasping breath escaped the gritting teeth and shakily made it’s way past chapped and fang bit lips. Angel sauntered over and gripped Rin’s jaw in his hand, “I think that’s enough for today. Do try to get rest.” 

Rin spat in his face, causing Angel to flinch back in disgust, “Douchebag.” 

“Aw,” Angel cooed, “your threats are getting weak, _Demon_.” 

“At least _I_ have the balls to do what’s right!” 

A perfect, blond eyebrow crept closer to the owner's hairline, “But I am. And everyone will soon come to realize this once the world is rid of you.” Angel flipped his hair over his shoulders and sauntered out smugly. Whether it was to piss him off, or just be dramatic, the former was working. 

A sudden bout of weariness overtook the young demon as the gleaming, metal door closed loudly. Rin’s head fell limply against his bare chest and harsh breaths pulsed shakily through his body. The blue-haired boy tried to force his heavy eyelids to stay open, for fear of something, or someone, new stepping through the door and having a go at his chained form. 

His body protested as he felt heavy lids sliding over blue orbs. 

*** 

Not realizing he had fallen asleep until the metal door opened and closed loudly, Rin mentally cursed himself for letting his guard down. Weary eyes scanned the darkened and cold room. After a few moments of finding nothing, his heart began to beat frantically. 

He’d always hated not being able to see the world around him, and that only got worse when he unsheathed the Kurikara. Exactly how Shiro had told him _not_ to. Upon figuring out he had night vision, if he couldn’t see anything, it scared the shit out of him. 

“H-hello?” The rugged whisper from Rin echoed across the room eerily. 

_**My prince?**_

The prince in question yelped, then dissolved into a coughing fit. A gentle paw rested against his leg or tried to. The Byakko landed on the hilt of a dagger by accident and pushed it further into his already pained leg. 

He cried out as the demon whimpered and apologized repeatedly, _**I’m so sorry!**_

“‘S fine,” He whimpered weakly, “Angel just left in knives.” 

_**Where? I can remove them.**_

Rin bit his lip and looked down pleadingly at the black Byakko. He didn’t want her to get in trouble with Angel or her tamer, but he needed to feel some relief. He nodded slightly and the fox-like demon clamped her jaws around the hilt of the knife she had just pushed deeper. 

_**3… 2… 1**_

Rin shrieked as the metal slid out of the flesh. The sickening sound of his flesh caused his stomach to roll around. He’d been able to hold his stomach and swallow the foul tasting contents, but that was the final straw. 

He doubled over as best he could and threw anything and everything out of his stomach. Bile burned the back of his throat and seared deep into his already scratched esophagus. The Byakko on the floor jumped away just in time Rin’s stomach collided with the floor. 

It took a few minutes for him to feel better. He groaned and spit to the side and rid his mouth of the acidic taste, “Holy… fuck. I hate that guy.” 

The Byakko snorted and muttered sarcastically, _**However, is that possible?**_

Rin smiled weakly, “Why are y-you… helping me?” A pained hiss crawled up his windpipe as another blade was pulled from his body. 

_**Well, first off…**_ Another blade was pulled from his flesh, this time his side, _ **you’re the prince and two, I no longer agree with my master.**_

Rin’s eyebrows screwed together slightly, but he was reminded of the injury to the right side of his face, “No longer?” 

_**She found me when she was just an exwire. She was kind to me and took me in as her familiar. She used to only exercise demons that were doing harm. Now, she does it for fun. I want to leave, I was about to… then they got ahold of you.**_ The Byakko carefully pulled out the last blade, paused and scanned his body, _**I don’t have healing powers, but the last dose of Red Liquor was…**_

“An hour ago… I think?” 

_**Should wear off by sunrise. You might have some time to heal, hopefully.**_ Rin could clearly hear the doubt in her voice. 

The Byakko sauntered to another side of the room. Rin looked around worriedly, it was almost like she could disappear into the shadows. The sound of water hitting metal made him look back and forth frantically, “Byakko?” The young demon visibly cringed at the stand-in name. 

A moment later, the elder of the two returned with a heavy looking bucket of water in her mouth. She set it down carefully in front of him before marching off again. This time returning with an empty plastic cup. 

_**It’s Etsu.**_ The newly proclaimed Etsu dipped the cup into the water and set it to the side. Rin watched her tip the bucket over to wash the blood and other fluids that had mixed into sludge, down a drain somewhere behind him. Etsu tipped the now empty bucket further and perched herself on the flat bottom. 

She balanced the water-filled plastic cup on her nose and stretched her lean body as close as she could to Rin’s face. The purple bandana around her neck fluttered slightly as he took the cup between his teeth and tipped it back. 

The cool liquid sloshed across his face and into his mouth. It stung the wounds it made contact with. But, he didn’t care. It was refreshing as he swallowed the majority down his throat. It washed away the terrible taste of upchuck and blood. He sighed happily and turned to Etsu, “Thank you.” 

She smiled and kicked the bucket and cup into the corner again and laid down next to Rin so he could still see her. She smiled kindly, _**Rest. I’ll watch the door.**_ He nodded and felt his tired head tilt against his shoulder and the world dimmed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Very long silence* Now I can't get angry at writers for doing shitty things to my favorite characters. God, flipping dammit! I am such a horrible person and am currently rethinking my life choices, all of them. I'm going to regret this someday, I just know it.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry.

He was woken at the ass crack of dawn. It took a moment to jump-start his brain into remembering just where the hell he was and what the hell was going on. But when he did, he instantly regretted it. A large pale face was extremely close to his own and two grey eyes melded into one, “Morning, Sunshine!” They greeted in a chipper voice. Though it didn’t match their absolutely pissed off face. 

Rin growled angrily as he rolled his head away from the Jackass in front of him, “Thanks a lot, Jackass. You just ruined that name for me.” The sneer on the others face grew angrier, “Oh, you’d better watch the face, Angel. I’m pretty sure angels don’t look like that.” 

Angel grumbled something and turned to the two Exorcists that had accompanied him yesterday, “Sora and Aika will have their chance to do with you as they please. But first,” He held up a cup of Red Liquor and tilted it to the mouth of the chained demon. 

Before the pain even _began_ he was crying silently. He waited, twisting his face as he waited for the agony to begin. His mouth was wrenched open by the knight, Sora, as Angel poured the disgusting liquid down his gullet. 

The tamer, Aika, slapped her hand over his mouth to keep him from spitting it out. He held it on his tongue as long as he could. His eyes frantically trained on Etsu, begging for help. She only shook her head and made a swallowing motion, _**The longer you disobey, the worse your injuries will be,**_ She warned. 

He paused and bit his lip. Angel was glaring angrily at him, so he did exactly what he wanted. He swallowed, his body gagged, tring to force it back up. But he knew that wouldn’t work. The pain began in his calves this time, his muscles cramping angrily. He cried out and the exorcists let go of him. 

His head pulsed and beat angrily. His heartbeat quickened as every bone in his body became broken and reformed over and over. His jaw hurt from clenching it tightly. His head snapped back as he wailed in pain. The non-existent fire swirled inside him, burning him. Boiling his blood. His mind beating against his skull, trying to break free. 

He wanted it to stop, _needed_ it to stop. Maybe his heart would stop, the pain would be gone. He would be free of this torture. The liquid was taking over his thoughts, blocking out the sound of his painful howls. 

**Just die! End it! Kill me! Kill me kill me kill me kill me KİLL ME!** He was screaming his pleas. Begging Angel to _END IT!_

Etsu’s eyes were wide as he screamed, “Kill me! End it! That’s what you want! Just fucking _KILL ME_!” 

Angel leaned forward slightly, “This is an even better reaction than last time,” He smirked at the two Exorcists standing quietly behind him, “Have fun.” Then he walked out as pristine white heels clipped finitely against the floor, leaving Rin to his screaming and the others to do whatever they pleased. 

They walked forward smugly as mirth shined in their eyes. The pain of the drug hadn’t even begun to wear off and they were already beginning. Rin couldn’t think, he didn’t want to. He didn’t want to think how painful that barbed dagger was going to be when it was ripped out of his skin repeatedly. Then, how much more painful it actually was as the knight jammed it into bare patches and already blood-soaked skin. 

Sora was giggling madly, having the time of his life piercing Rin’s skin and drawing it out to do it again. Etsu flinched every time the metal connected and Rin let out an ear piercing _scream._

“Sora,” Aika catcalled, “move aside, I want to have some fun, too.” 

“P-please…” Rin whimpered as the tamer raised a gun and fired off shots into his arms, and his legs. She was careful to leave the carved words on his skin intact as well as not killing him, just yet. He wanted to die, he wanted his heart to stop. And he tried to get it to, then he saw his friends, his family. How Shura was like his big sister and how much he wanted to keep Yukio safe. He saw Shima, pink hair and all, clutching his brother’s hand. And how happy they had been upon coming out to them. How he had smiled and hugged Shima hard enough to knock the air out of him. 

How Shiemi became more of a friend and Izumo started opening up to them. Even if it was only slightly. How he had smiled an entire day non-stop when Konekomaru didn’t flinch or look away when they were near each other. 

Then there was Suguro. How angry that guy had been when Rin pushed himself to the limits. How worried he was after the whole ordeal in Kyoto. And how Rin’s couldn’t help but smile a little brighter when Bon looked at him. How no matter how angry Bon was at him, he couldn’t help but blush. The friendly banter they traded in class and the nicknames they called each other. The kind looks they shared, and when he caught Bon staring when he thought Rin wasn’t looking. And the knowing looks he sometimes caught the others sending them. He smiled giddily, if he got out of here, he’d tell him. He wouldn’t bite his lip and pretend there wasn’t anything he wanted to say. 

Rin lifted his head and gave the Exorcists a very blank look, “Go ahead fuckers. When I get out of here, I’m going to kill you!” 

He caught Etsu smile in apology as another round of bullets plowed into his body. 

*** 

Suguro’s head slammed against the table in frustration. His plan should have worked. The police would call Rin and Angel. Then some stupid soul would answer just long enough for them to triangulate their position. Shura had insisted on going alone, allowing them to sleep longer. Which, he admitted to needing. 

By the time Shura came back, they were up and ready to go to war with Angel. But Shura only shook her head. Apparently, that bastard was smarter than he looked. 

Shura sighed quietly before walking over to the table they were previously using, all the papers still littering the surface. She clutched multiple of the address notecards and walked out the door silently. They all took that as a silent order to continue research on potential buildings Rin could be in. 

And they’d been at it for a while now. Ukobach walked in and passed out lunch for the entire group. Though, none of them showed interest in their personal health or how their stomachs protested the lack of food. The kitchen demon glared at them for ignoring his food. 

Thankfully the smaller demon waddled away back to the kitchen. The exwires, however, failed to notice his return, this time with a large cup of water. Which he promptly dumped on the youngest Okumura’s head. 

Said brunette squawked in surprise, “What the hell was that for!?” There was a long pause before he spoke again, “I am aware that we aren’t eating your food,” Another pause, “Fine!” The last part was growled angrily before he grabbed a plate began shoveling food unceremoniously into his mouth. It was still strange to them that Yukio could hear demons, but only two. Kuro and Ukobach. 

Shima raised a concerned eyebrow at his boyfriend before sighing and reaching for his own plate. The others followed suit, though they ate a lot slower than their teacher. Ukobach nodded happily once they finished and carried the plates back to the kitchen. 

Bon watched the door warily, making certain the demon didn’t return to dump water on their heads. After numerous moments of nothing, Ryuji was able to turn back to the book of Grigori owned buildings. 

That’s when he saw something strange, “Hey, Shura?” He called to the she-demon as she walked back through the door, “this book only has _buildings_ in it, right?” 

“Mmh.” She nodded, not seeming to notice the strange look on the bicolor haired teen’s face. 

Koneko was the only one to notice said look, “What is, Bon?” 

“If this book only has buildings owned by the Grigori, why is a _field_ in here?” He questioned, his eyebrows were screwed together in confusion. 

Shura looked up and tore the book from the exwire’s hands. Her pink eyes scanned the page a multitude of times before finding the same words Bon had been questioning. Her eyes narrowed, “It’s a safe house,” She finally stated, “it’s underground and soundproof. But, the Grigori closed it off ages ago.” 

Koneko hummed quietly before inquiring, “How large is this ‘field’?” 

“Says here it’s about 205,000 acres. I think that’s about the size of New York City.” 

“You’re joking,” Ryuji grumbles in disbelief. 

“Nope. But the building is only roughly the size of a theatre. It’d take a few days to thoroughly check the entire plot for the entrance, due to the fact all the keys to that building were destroyed. But, it’s the best chance we got,” Shura nods and starts running down the hall, “pack yewr shit and let’s get movin’!” 

Ryuji smiled wickedly, “You heard the she-demon, let’s get going.” He sprinted up the stairs after the elder to pack his belongings. It wasn’t long before they were all packed and heading to the bus to get as close to the place as possible. On the way, Shura filled the exwires and Yukio in on the place. 

“This place ain’t jus’ a field. Half o’ the plot is a mountain and another piece is covered in forest. It’s also crawlin’ wit’ demons so while we’re there, stay in the borders at night. Understood?” There was a series of “Yes Ma’ams” Before she turned and continued to look out the window at the passing buildings. 

Shura had been extremely quiet, changing from her normal loud and drunk self to stern and quiet. They all knew Shura thought of Rin as a kid brother and Rin thought of her as a sister of sorts. Kuro was perched on her shoulder, having insisted he come to help find his master, as translated by Yukio. 

Speaking of the youngest Okumura, Suguro turned to see him and Shima stretched across three seats as they curled up together. Bon reached his hand back to grab Koneko’s attention. The bald monk looked up at his friend and followed with his eyes to the direction Bon was pointing. He studied them for a second before smirking and snapping a picture. 

Shiemi noticed as well and leaned over, “I’m glad they’re happy. They’re really good for each other.” 

Izumo rolled her almost red eyes and said in the most snobby voice possible, “Well, I think it’s disgusting.” 

Ryuji stood up and almost shouted. “Can you _ever_ say anything nice? Or are you just that dense?” 

“Oh, I’m dense?” Izumo stood to get in the older teen’s face, “says the one who won’t admit his crush on his classmate. The same classmate that is currently _missing_! We all know about it. But you two-” 

She was interrupted by Shiemi slapping a hand over her mouth, “Enough! Stop fighting, Rin wouldn’t want us fighting. So CALM DOWN!” 

Bon’s brown eyes widened because, holy shit. They’d never seen her this angry. Her bright green eyes flashed in an angry way. Almost daring them to go against what she just said. Bon sat down heavily after shooting Izumo another hard glare. She scoffed and turned away as well. 

By some miracle, the two sleeping teens hadn’t so much as twitched. Though, Suguro counted that as a good thing. Otherwise, their teacher would be driving them up the walls with his worrying. 

The remainder of the bus ride was relatively quiet. Shiemi was ordering her familiar, Nii, to produce a multitude of plants so she could put them in viles. Bon guessed it was so she could have them on hand easily without wearing out the Greenman. Koneko was fiddling with the metal detectors they had rented. Shura had assured them that the entrance was completely metal, but the rest was concrete. Hopefully, it would make it easier than continuously picking up the building instead of the door. 

Bon’s leg was bouncing up and down rapidly, he was extremely nervous. What if they found Rin, but he wasn’t the same? And what Izumo said, was it that obvious he liked Rin? Did the half-demon even like him that way? He ran his hands through his bi-colored hair in frustration. He just wanted to find his friend, he could deal with feelings later. Or, maybe, never. Yeah, that sounded good. 

The bus dropped them off at the edge of the forest on the property. The driver had said something along the lines of it being too dangerous to drive on the road that leads to their final destination. 

No one was happy. They were all ready to ward off some demons. But, nothing seemed to happen. That made them even more suspicious that Angel might be keeping Rin on the property. 

After three long hours of marching through the mosquito-infested forest, they came upon a grass-covered patch of land. It was relatively huge. Bon groaned, finding this entrance would take forever. 

*** 

Rin was so done. Every day had been the same. Wake up at the ass crack of dawn to holy water being dumped on his head. Scream through the pain of the Red Liquor. Then endure the pain Angel, Sora, and Aika inflicted on him. Though, they continued to avoid the “Murderer” on his arm. The one place Rin _wanted_ them to tear apart. 

At some point in the past five days of being here, it had become hard to breathe. He _knew_ he was losing too much blood. The puddles on the floor proved it. Angel even announced how thin he was getting and he could see his bones. He didn’t ask for elaboration on which way. He was pretty sure the bloody white was visible through some of his wounds. 

He also knew Angel was losing interest in him and would kill him soon. _Guys, please come quick! I can’t take this any longer._ At night, Etsu would come and offer him water as well as try to clean away the muck under the boy. His pants were in rags and barely covered anything. He couldn’t see out of his right eye and he lost hope awhile ago on ever seeing through it again. 

Etsu always listened quietly as he told her about his friends. She especially liked to listen to him talking about Suguro. When he had asked why, her only reply was, **_Your eyes light up when you talk about him. You seem happy for a little bit._**

He had smiled at that, “You know, y-you’re… way different than Izumo’s…” He had to pause as a painful cough ripped from his throat. Blood and bile splattered to the floor. Etsu quietly offered him another cup of water. He gratefully took it to wash away the taste of acid. He took a deep breath as the cup fell from his mouth and Etsu caught it easily, “Izumo has two Byakko familiars. But, they-they aren’t as kind as you.” 

Etsu froze before scolding him. _**Why didn’t you say something sooner!**_

“Wh-what?” 

**_I could have gotten to them and lead them here! They can communicate with others! Most Byakko can. What are their names!?_**

Rin stared wide eyed at the motherly demon in front of him. Fat tears streamed down his face, “Mike and Uke.” 

She nodded and rested her front paws on the wall. Her tongue gently licked the side of his face, **_I’ll be back tomorrow night at the lastest. You’ll have to deal with Angel on your own. You sure you can do that?_**

“Y-yeah,” He whimpered through his tears, “when I get out of here, I’m bringing you with me, Etsu. I’m not letting that tamer have control over you any longer.” 

Etsu’s violet eyes shone with tears as she nuzzled the demon prince’s cheek gently. He white paws left the wall and carried her black figure out to the closed door. She disappeared into a puff of smoke and was gone instantly. Rin sighed, he knew he wouldn’t be able to sleep without her with him, but if it meant he had a change of getting out of here? Then hell yes.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yeah, if you though the last four chapters were bad... have fun reading _this!_

They were all sitting around a crackling fire, silently eating their horrible reheatable food. Shima gagged and threw his food in the fire after another failed attempt at eating it, “God, I miss Rin’s cooking,” He froze and side-eyed the brunette sitting beside him. 

But Yukio only smiled, “Don’t tell Ukoback that, they’ll end up having another food war and blowing up the kitchen again.” 

Sensing the need to continue the light-hearted topic, Bon gasped, “You’re kidding! When was that?” 

“Second day here,” Yukio chuckled lightly. 

“Wait!” Shima squawked, “that was the mushroom cloud we saw!” 

The youngest Okumura shrugged, “Probably.” 

Shura pushed the butt of her hands into her eyes, “Leave it to that dummy to blow something up on the second day.” 

“He almost blew up the cafeteria on the first day, too. Though he _was_ mostly pissed at the prices for food.” 

Shura cackled as though she remembered something, “Remember when he was training with the candles for the first time?” 

Yukio’s eyes widened as his face paled. He buried his head in his hands, “That was a nightmare! He burned the entire room and our clothes. I was ready to kill him!” 

Shima gaped and turned to his boyfriend, “You mean I missed my chance to see you-” 

“Shima!” Konekomaru scolded, “why is that _always_ where your mind goes? You’re a MONK!” 

“So?” Shima shrugged with false innocence, “it’s not my fault Yukio’s really hot.” 

Their teachers face grew extremely red from behind his hands, “Shima!” The brunette whined. 

“Who knows,” Shima continues like he hadn’t just heard Yukio, “maybe the Okumura brothers just have a thing for monks.” The pinkette wiggled his eyebrows at Bon. 

Ryuji’s lips parted slightly, “What are you talking about? First Izumo and now you?” 

Shiemi turned to him, “Rin quite obviously likes you and you do, too.” 

The older teen scoffed and crossed his arms, “Do not.” 

“Well,” Yukio said, drawing Bon’s attention away from the fire, “I know for a fact that Nii-san has a crush on you.” 

Shima nods, “Trust us. Yukio complains about it all the time, how he won’t _shut up_ about you.” 

It was like they were trying to see how red Ryuji could get. And he was sure if he got any more embarrassed, he’d boil his blood. That just sent a shudder through his body. There was some shuffling around him and a squeak from Shiemi. “Okay! What now- ahh!” Bon cried out in surprise when he looked up and came face to face with shining violet eyes and black fur. He scrambled back, how did a demon get into the circle?! 

*** 

Etsu was going to scream. It had been relatively easy to find the group, just by tracking the scent of the two Byakko familiars, even if they hadn’t been summoned. She was forced to stop before she could walk up the group of Rin’s friends. A demon warding circle was drawn on the ground. 

**_Are you fucking KIDDING ME!?_**

How was she going to get Rin’s friends to him if she couldn’t even get in to try communicating with them? She growled in anger and kicked a stone hard. It sailed right through the barrier. She stared in disbelief, how had she never tried that? 

She walked around, looking to the ground for a stick. Maybe it could reach through and screw up the drawing on the ground enough for her to crawl through and get them back to Rin. She needed to get back soon. He was growing weaker, and Etsu feared that another dose or two of the Red Liquor could be enough to finish him off. 

Estu shook her head, she wasn’t going to let that happen. Not on her watch, this boy was too young to have been in a battle with Satan. And he most certainly shouldn’t be dealing with this right now. He should only be worried about school and his love interests. Not _this!_

Her violet eyes caught sight of a long shape. She sauntered over carefully and grabbed the branch in her mouth. She was surprised none of the teens had noticed her yet, they must really be out of it. She allowed the end to rest against the ground and drag through the white paint. Breaking the circle. She took a deep breath and quietly stepped into the campsite. 

She walked up to the group, scanning them from the shadows. She instantly recognized Suguro from the descriptions Rin had given her. She smiled to herself and stepped into the light. There were many shocked faces as she stepped in front of the exwire. 

A doe-eyed blonde girl, probably Shiemi, squeaked. Suguro had still failed to notice her due to his bowed head. It didn’t take long for him to look up, “Okay! What now-ahh!” Etsu flinched at the loud cry of surprise. 

That was not at all what she had been expecting. Though she understood, she was a demon who had crossed through a demon barrier. There was a click of a gun’s safety and a, “Wait! It’s not attacking.” 

Though the hypocrite saying so had a snake fang blade held up in defense. Etsu scanned the group, she needed to find this Izumo girl. She was the one who could summon Mike and Uke. She scanned the group for the only other girl with summoning papers up. 

Her eyes caught sight of purple ponytails and red eyes. Bingo! She ran up to her and nudged the papers. Please work, please work, please work! Izumo looked up to her two teachers in confusion, “What do I do?!” She whisper-yelled. 

The red-head she was talking to pinched the bridge of her nose, “Summon yewr Byakko.” 

Etsu yipped happily and wagged her tail to show she agreed. A brunette with glasses looked at her strangely, “This day can’t get any weirder.” 

_**Never say never**_ Etsu thought though she knew the boy couldn’t hear her. 

Her attention was again drawn to Izumo when she shakily said, “I humbly appeal to the, oh goddess Inari. Grant my request and leave not my prayers to be unfulfilled.” 

Etsu cackled quietly. It must have pissed off the twin Byakko's when they realized Izumo was summoning them using the words of an angel (they aren’t really. I just made that part up). Oh, God, that was priceless. 

The twin, white Byakko's appeared beside Izumo. Uke growled at the human girl, “What do you want this time, Woman?” 

Izumo raised an eyebrow, now Etsu understood why Rin continued to call her “Polka-brow”. 

**_Actually, I needed you._**

The twin whipped around, both exclaiming, “Etsu!?” 

**_Well finally. I need you to translate for me_**

Mike growled, “Why should we translate for you?” 

Etsu snarled and pounced at them. Pinning them to the floor. Izumo yelped and tried to run toward the three. She seemingly thought better of it and stopped. **_You will translate for me because I said to. I don’t care if you are in your “rebellious teen years”. You WILL listen to me. Understood?”_**

The two nodded and Etsu walked back, allowing them to get back to their feet. Uke looked at the ring of exwires, “She wants us to translate something to you.” 

**_I know where Rin is_**

The two blanched before Uke repeated her words, “She knows where Rin is.” 

**_He’s badly hurt, Angel’s been torturing him for the fun of it. A handful of Exorcists are also helping Angel. My tamer, Aika, included. You need to be ready for a fight. I can lead you to the entrance and will bring you to Rin. I hate what those dickheaded bastards are doing to him._**

“I’m not saying that!” Uke protested. 

Mike flinched and sighed, “She said, “He’s badly hurt, Angel’s been torturing him for the fun of it. A handful of Exorcists are also helping Angel. My tamer, Aika, included. You need to be ready for a fight. I can lead you to the entrance and will bring you to Rin. I hate what those… dickheaded bastards are doing to him.” 

Shura snorted, “I like her.” 

“They’re torturing Rin?” Shiemi whimpered. 

Etsu nodded, **_Angel also created this strange liquid called Red Liquor. It’s Leviathan's blood, Holy water, and Hellfire. I’ve seen what it does. If Rin gets another dose, he could die. You also need to get a healer here immediately._**

Yukio nodded after Mike translated, “Shiemi and I can heal him. Will that be enough?” 

Etsu shook her head rapidly, **_No. We need one of those hospital trucks. What are they called?_**

Mike gulped, “Rin needs a hospital truck.” 

“An ambulance!” Suguro exclaimed, “he’s that bad?” 

Etsu only nodded and watched the following chaos. Shura and Yukio started barking out orders. Making everyone get ready to beat the shit out of Angel. Yukio turned to Etsu as the phone dialed, “Where does the ambulance need to go?” 

**_The western cave of this mountain_**

Mike easily translated and Yukio nodded and spouted an elaborate name into the phone. They were soon all marching to the cave Etsu knew the entrance was in. She only hoped they’d make it in time. 

*** 

Rin was being strapped to the table. Angel hadn’t even bothered to give him the Red Liquor. He was so injured and weak, he didn’t even try to fight back. And his body wouldn’t be able to heal him anyway. It was a small victory to be able to avoid some pain today. 

Though, when Angel turned around with a wicked looking saw he knew he was royally screwed. Angel leaned down so they were mere inches apart, “I was going to kill you this morning. But, I figured I’d make you suffer before you died,” Angel stood up and ran his finger over the cool blade of the saw, “your friends are coming right now. What’s a better way to make you suffer than to watch their pain of knowing they were too late!” 

Angel rested the sharp blade in the middle of Rin’s thigh. A jesting smile crossed the man’s face as the blade dug straight down into his skin. He whimpered slightly and bit his lip. Sora walked up and the blade paused, “They’re in the hall.” 

"Good, stay here. Make them think they have the advantage,” Sora nodded and moved to stand next to Angel, “I hope this hurts.” Angel murmured and he began to saw back and forth through his flesh. His back arched off the table and the torturing _pain never stopped!_

His blood-curdling screams filled the air. Six days, it had been six days and he still wasn't anywhere close to getting out of this hell hole. About six days ago, he had been sitting in class, sleeping through another lecture as usual. Oh, how the fates hated him. He couldn't think, could barely breathe through the iron taste of blood in the air. It was pooling beneath him in thick puddles. The red was staining his skin, the warm liquid a stark contrast to the cold metal table beneath him. The saw cut deeper into his flesh, painful spots danced at the edges of his vision. He was going to die here, in a pool of his own blood. He would never get revenge on Satan for killing his father. Never see his friends smiling or enjoying his cooking. What hurt most of all, was the reality that he wouldn’t have the chance to live a normal life. 

He’d only served to lead his friends into a trap. He was screaming and howling in agonizing pain. He didn’t know how he managed it, but strangled words crawled out of his throat, “J-Just kill me! Do it already!” He was crying, begging, and screaming for it to stop. 

He couldn’t even recognize himself with how he was acting. There was a clang of metal against metal. He couldn’t lift his head to see what Angel had done, he only knew his leg was a mess. The strange thing was, he couldn’t feel it. 

Pitiful sobs crept up his throat. He didn’t care if he shouldn’t be showing weakness. But it hurt. _Good God! What did I ever do to you?! Why did you make my life like this? Why even bother?!_

The glinting metal of a knife rose above his chest. His broken blue eyes locked on evil gray, “Do it.” He whispered. But the metal didn’t have a chance to drop as a purple and green blade protruded through the pale neck to the crazy man above him. 

*** 

The march to the entrance took too long in Bon’s opinion. Rin could need them _right now, dammit!_ But he had to take a deep breath. Everyone was antsy and wanted to see Rin again. Even this Etsu demon. 

On the quiet trail, he couldn't help but wonder if they’d be getting back the same Rin. He could be different, changed. Ryuji shook his head, they’d need to help Rin through what happens in the future. 

Shima was clutching his boyfriend's hand, knowing Yukio would sprint ahead if he didn’t have some form of anchor. Shiemi was absentmindedly running her fingers over the glass vials she’d filled with healing plants. Her lips were moving, likely reciting the names of the herbs to reassure herself. 

Izumo was wearing her signature glare, her Byakko’s were walking up with Etsu. He couldn’t blame them, he was trying to keep his distance as well. Shura was behind everyone, keeping them in check. She had pulled Ryuji back by his collar multiple times after almost falling off the edge of the trail. 

Suguro failed to notice the group stop and ran into Izumo. She just rolled her eyes and turned away. Kuro jumped up and perched himself on Bon’s shoulders and mewed in the teen’s heavily pierced ears. The teen had reached up to scratch Rin’s familiar behind the ear. 

Mike turned to the group, “Angel will be expecting us. There are two doors into the room Rin is in. One is the main one, the second, only a few know about. Angel will be expecting us to use the first option. We cannot use it. No matter _what_ you hear. Understood?” 

The exwires nodded. It felt weird to be bossed around by full-blooded demons, but Suguro didn’t care. He just wanted Rin back, the Rin he loved and cared for. He took a deep breath, maybe he shouldn’t be thinking about that right now. He needed to focus on getting Rin, they all did. 

Etsu led them through dark hallways, occasionally passing an Exorcist. They took turns taking them out. Bon would be lying if he said it didn’t feel good to break someone’s nose with his fist. 

“We’re close,” Uke stated calmly. That’s when it started. The screaming, bone-chilling and blood-curdling. 

“Rin!” Yukio tried to run toward the sound but was pulled back by Shima and Shura. Etsu turned and they were directly in front of the room. Bon could tell this was the door, it was nearly invisible. He would have missed it unless he had known it was there. 

The stone slid open silently, Angel and another Exorcist had their backs to them. They were cackling over a thrashing Rin. Ryuji’s heart broke instantly. He was bloody and ripped up. His head slammed against the table as horrible screams tore from his body. 

A warbling cry escaped him, forming heart-wrenching words, “J-just kill me! Do it already!” 

Bon’s lips parted and the grip he had on the pistol Yukio lent him tightened. There was a clash of metal on metal, that seemed to be the breaking point for Shura. She launched forward, sword out, and cut right through Angel’s throat. 

Bon ran forward to shoot at the knight that had been standing next to him. Every shot was parried by the gleaming sword. Other Exorcists were busy with the others. Kuro was at his full size and trampling people beneath his feet. Shima was twirling his K’rik and batting people in the head as Yukio used his other gun to shoot them down. They were standing back to back as Koneko recited passages that would protect them. Three Byakko and a Greenman were hitting and trapping people relentlessly. 

The man in front of him was whirling back and forth between blocking strikes from Shura and dodging bullets from Ryuji. Shura nodded at Bon and they struck simultaneously. The man went to block Shura’s blade but received a bullet to the back instead. 

He was knocked to the ground, clearly dead. But Bon didn’t care, he continued shooting him in the back until Shima pried the firearm from his arm, “He’s dead Bon. It’s okay, they all are.” 

The older teen nodded and turned to the table Rin was strapped to. His heart was tearing apart. He was bruised and beaten. Whip marks and cuts lining his pale skin. As the teen's eyes traveled down the other’s body, bile rose in his throat. Shima turned away to hurl on the floor, having a similar reaction. 

Rin’s left leg was missing. Thick red blood poured out of the mark, that must be fresh. A clean white bone was visible from the end. Bon leaned forward and quickly began removing the rough binds holding the younger boy down, “B-Bon?” 

Suguro turned to look at him, “It’s okay, we’re here. We’re going to get you out of here.” 

Rough, broken sobs shook Rin’s thinner body. Yukio turned to Shiemi, “We need to stop the bleeding. Everyone else, hold him down.” 

Bon gently held down his shoulders and looked into Rin’s blue eyes. One was misted over with a long, jagged cut down the middle. Yukio was frantically sifting through the bag he had brought up as he said, “It’s okay, Rin. You’ll be alright. Everything's going to be fine. It’s-” 

“Kio, I’m fine. Sto-stop worrying.” His voice was hoarse and blood made his lips appear darker. 

Yukio froze and cursed. When Shima asked, his only answer was, “He hasn’t called me “Kio” since we were kids. He’s definitely _not_ alright.” Shima nodded and continued to gently hold Rin’s still intact leg, “Nii-san, this is going to hurt. Okay?” 

Frantic eyes continued to shift around. Ryuji’s eyebrows pinched together as he cupped Rin’s cheek to try and comfort him, “It’s alright. You’re fine, you’re with us now.” 

Rin smiled sleepily and mumbled, “You’re cute when you’re worried.” 

He looked up to see Shima smirking at him, “Told ya.” 

“Not helping,” He growled before looking back down at Rin. His eyes were half-lidded, “hey hey hey, wake up. Don’t fall asleep.” 

Rin yawned slightly as Yukio stated, “Izumo, I want you to wait for the ambulance and lead them in here,” She nodded and sprinted into the hall, “Rin, I need to clean this. I’ll count down though. 3… 2… 1…” 

Rin cried out and squirmed on the table. Bon knew Yukio couldn’t do much if he was squirming this much. He needed to distract him, and only one way came to mind, “No laughing,” He grumbled as he leaned down and gently kissed Rin’s lips. 

The boy froze, exactly how he knew he would. He heard someone snigger but paid no mind. Instead, he flipped them off and straightened. His face was burning bright red. He turned to Yukio and asked, “Did you clean it?” 

“Yup. Though, I am never forgetting that,” Yukio snickered as did Shima. 

“Dammit,” Bon cursed. He bit his lip and motioned to the door, “We should get him outside, the fresh air might help.” 

Shiemi nodded, “It does! A lot of patients…” 

Bon zoned out and gently slide his arms around Rin. The boy yelped, the bandage Yukio had applied to his leg was already soaked through and dripping. The others were walking ahead, ready to beat up anyone that dared to show their face. Etsu was walking next to Rin, sending him worried glances on occasion. 

Kuro was curled on the least harmed part of Rin’s sickly pale body. Shura was storming next to him, cursing Angel’s name and squeezing Rin’s hand every few seconds. They made it to the entrance without a single sign of any Exorcists or the EMTs. 

Izumo turned to them and shrugged, “They could still be driving up the mountain, or had to walk. We could meet them down there to make it easier?” 

Yukio and Shura exchanged a look before nodding. Bon looked down to check on Rin, he was shivering badly. Bon carefully set him down and draped his own jacket over the younger before picking him back up again. 

He looked up to see Shiemi jumping up and down excitedly, “You missed it! Suguro kissed Rin right after you left!” 

“What?!” Izumo squawked. Her shoulders dropped after a moment and she handed Shiemi a bag of candy from her pocket, “I guess you win.” 

“You were betting on us?!” Bon yelled in outrage. 

“Shh,” A pale hand clamped weakly over Bon’s mouth. He looked down to see Rin glaring at him, “too loud. And fuck you guys!” He shouted the last part to the other exwires that were trading items. 

“Besides,” Bon proclaimed as they began to carefully walk down the trail, “I was trying to get this Blueberry to stop moving.” 

“Whatever, Rooster.” The words lacked their usual venom as the younger curled tightly against Bon’s chest. Ryuji sighed and hugged him closer. Rin hummed happily and nuzzled deeper between the jacket and Bon, he was the happiest he had been since he’d been taken. 

Suguro looked ahead and caught a glimpse of flashing red and blue lights. They were almost there.


	6. Chapter 6

Rin had been more than surprised when Suguro had pressed his lips against his. They had been exactly how he’d imagined, slightly chapped but still soft and sweet. Bon had been warm and he never wanted to pull away but knew that it wasn’t the right time or place. 

He was curled into Bon, the older boy’s oversized jacket draped across his shoulders to keep him warm. He breathed in deeply, trying to ignore the immense pain he was in. So he focused on anything else. 

He concentrated on how Bon smelled as he tried to ignore the iron taste of blood on his own body. Suguro smelled like coconut and warm chocolate on a sunny day. He’d always laugh at books when someone would say someone smelled like sunshine. But, Bon truly did. He took another deep breath and smiled slightly, he didn’t notice Bon catching sight of his expression until he laughed, his chest vibrating slightly. 

“W-what?” Rin glanced up warily, not happy about leaving his little cocoon. 

“You’re smiling. I’m just surprised,” 

Rin’s lips formed a silent ‘oh’ until he shrugged slightly, “You just smell good. I thought you’d smell like sweat,” His smile almost immediately fell, “I’m also trying to distract myself from what happened.” 

Rin felt Bon’s thumb gently rub circles on his side, “You should have seen it,” Rin looked up in confusion, “Ukobach got pissed at us for not eating and dumped a bucket of water on Yukio’s head.” Rin smiled slightly, he was grateful for the attempt at distracting him. Bon continued, telling silly stories and making the others as well. He especially liked the picture Koneko showed him of Yukio sleeping on the bus, curled on top of Shima. 

**_I can see why you care about them so much._**

He turned to look at Etsu, surprise written across his face, “Did you think I was lying?” 

The others turned to listen to the seemingly one-sided conversation between them. **_’Course not,_** She scoffed dramatically, **_I just didn’t think they would like you because of your… um… demon heritage._**

“Yeah, they got over that pretty quick.” Etsu nodded and turned back to the flashing lights that were growing closer every second. Rin shook his head tiredly and buried himself closer to Ryuji. It was getting harder to ignore the pain, and even more so to keep his eyes opened. Maybe he could just close his eyes for a moment. 

*** 

Bon noticed the way Rin’s twitching stopped and his breathing slowed. He looked down to see lids covering bright blue eyes. Bon gently tapped his shoulder, “Hey, wake up. We’re almost there.” 

There was no response as Bon shook the demon harder. Rin’s head lulled backward limply, “Shit! Rin, wake you!” 

That got the attention of the others. Yukio turned just in time to see Bon sprinting down the hill, and he soon followed. Fear for Rin coursing through him. The trail was slippery due to the high amount of loose rocks rolling around, but he didn’t stop. He wasn’t going to let Rin die after everything they’d gone through to get him back. 

The EMTs were waiting at the foot of the mountain, immediately taking Rin and strapping him securely to the stretcher and hoisted him into the vehicle. A breathing mask was covering his nose and mouth as his breaths were coming out ragged and strained. One of the paramedics walked up frantically, “We’re taking him to the hospital. One of you can come with us, the others can go in that van.” 

He nudged his head towards a painted red and white van from the fire station. Bon turned to Yukio and motioned to the ambulance frantically, “You’re his brother… you should go.” 

Yukio just shook his head, “You’re the only one that was able to calm him down.” The brunette ran toward the van and slid inside with the others. Bon couldn’t help but be grateful he could go with Rin. He quickly jumped inside as the door slammed behind him and they sped down a hidden dirt road through the woods. 

The EMTs were scrabbling about, trying to stop the bleeding, pumping fresh air into his lungs. He bare chest rising slightly as the vehicle wove through cars and ran red lights. Bon gently cupped his cheeks, whispering distraught words in hopes his sensitive ears would hear. 

“Wake up, Rin. Come on, don’t die on me,” Ryuji hadn’t realized he was crying. One of the paramedics cast him a pitiful look as she pressed down forcefully on Rin’s still bleeding leg. Bon’s tanned hands brushed matted, dark blue hair from his face. 

His eyes shifted when one of the EMTs tapped him on the shoulder. He was still applying pressure to Rin’s pale chest. The man lifted a hand and tapped Rin’s bicep. He caught a glimpse of what was written there and growled. If Angel wasn’t already dead, Bon would have killed him right then and there. He turned away and saw another person struggling to hold Rin’s tail down. 

They didn’t seem all that surprised by the appendage, but it was bleeding badly and needed treatment, “Let me, it’s really sensitive,” The man nodded and shifted to help the man with Rin’s torso. 

Ryuji carefully gripped Rin’s tail and wiped it down carefully. The black-blue appendage continued to struggle, trying to climb out of his grip tiredly. This only served to worry Bon further. Rin could be free of all of them easily, but he was weak and thinner than usual. His toned muscles were barely visible and seemed to be painfully cramping when he shifted too much. 

Suguro gently took Rin’s hand and ran his thumb over cracked knuckles. A low pitched whine escaped Rin. Bon’s heart leapt to his throat, if he was responding to the world around him, then he would be okay.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is late. But, TBH, I'm updating faster than I initially thought. I'm definitely going to get this finished by the year's end. Y'all are also going to get confused with this new character. She's kinda important and is actually the main in another book I'm writing (not an Au). Once I finish and publish that one, everything will make perfect sense. But, she's pretty much just here to help Rin. ;p

Rin was _not_ okay. Everything hurt and there were too many people touching him. Too many hands. It was Angel, the rough pressure and the white-hot _hands_. He whimpered, it was a dream. He thought we had gotten out of there, that they had come. It was a lie, he was going mad. 

It had felt so real. The screams of people dying left and right. The pain of Yukio cleaning his leg. His leg! Oh, God. Angel had sawn it off. There was something warm and almost soft under him, blood. It was his blood. He could feel the straps of the metal table, but they had loosened. Maybe he was thinning and the Red Liquor was draining him. He shuddered at the thought. 

The hands were pushing into him again, maybe they were driving daggers, finally killing him. Just how Rin had begged. There was a soft voice, cooing encouraging words. It was Etsu, but the words were out loud. He must have been hallucinating. 

Someone was touching his tail, he wanted to lash out. But a calloused hand was gripping his own. He recognized it, something comforting and deep and _pure_. 

Rin was tuning into the sounds around him. A car door opening and slamming shut behind him, then a jolt of hitting the ground. Heavy feet were running as the fresh air left him. Fresh air! He had been outside! Gasps and shouts sounded through an echoing area. 

His eyes opened slightly to see people he didn’t recognize. Then a hand was clutching his own. He focussed on it. Then a voice, rough but familiar, “Okumura, it’s alright. Please wake up. We can’t lose you, I can't lose you.” 

Suguro? He fought against his eyes to force them to _open_. He saw blurs, bright lights passing overhead and dark figures next to him. He lazily followed the hand to the connected body. He tried to focus on his friend above him, the streaked hair, the piercings. But he didn’t recognize the worried look. 

Was he really causing Bon to look like that? To worry so much. The older teen’s eyebrows were twinned tightly. Rin’s mouth opened, trying to form words, but something was blocking the sounds from escaping. 

His heart was constricting painfully, like the cold fingers of death were wound tightly around. He gasped, it hurt, good God it hurt! It needed to _**stop!**_ Bile rose in his throat, his vision was swaying. He knew if he’d been standing he’d have toppled. The lightheadedness caused his head to roll to the side. He was going to puke! Bon saw this as he tore off Rin’s mask just in time for the demon to dump the little contents of his stomach onto the floor. 

When had they stopped? They were in a room, monitors were being hooked to his chest. Bon was being ushered out of the room. There was a window, his friends, his family was there watching worriedly. Their shapes blurred together painfully. 

His neck was cramping as well as well as his back. He was writhing painfully on the bed. Cries of pain tearing through his throat. He couldn’t breathe, he couldn’t _breath!_ He was gasping for breath. It felt like the air was being sucked out of him by a vacuum. He was clutching at his chest, hands pushing him down as his back arched off the table. 

“...heart attack…” 

“...flatlining…” There was only black. 

*** 

Bon had freaked out when Rin had upchucked weakly on the hospital floor the moment the stretcher had stopped. Rin’s head was now turned slightly to their group as Bon was ushered out of the room. He wasn’t happy but knew if he fought back, they would be more focussed on him than Rin. 

The half-demon, _their_ half-demon was howling in pain. Clawing at his chest, or trying to as doctors held him down to keep him from harming himself anymore. They could see the clear pain of the other and wanted so badly to help. To stop his cries, he’d already suffered enough. Yukio’s face paled, he knew what was happening before the doctors even spoke. 

“He’s having a heart attack! Get everything off him!” The exwires stilled. Koneko and Shura were holding Ryuji back to keep him from running back into the room. 

A long, consistent beep sounded from the monitor as Rin stilled on the bed. His eyes were glassed over. 

“He’s flatlining!” Everything slowed down for Ryuji, he struggled harder. A cart was rushed over, Rin’s chest was bare, free of any medical equipment. 

“Charging to 110 Volts!” 

The doctor hurriedly grabbed the paddles, waiting as another shouted, “Clear,” Rin’s back arched harshly off the table, but his beat was still flat. 

“Charging to 240 Volts!” 

“Clear,” Nothing. Yukio was pacing. He knew they could only go so high and that Rin’s time was ticking down. They didn’t have long. Rin needed to wake up, to be alright. He couldn’t die like this, not his Nii-san. Not in a hospital bed, not now, not ever. 

“Charging to 320,” The doctor’s looked nervous, they didn’t want to lose their patient. They never wanted to lose a patient. 

“Clear!” Ryuji held his breath, he prayed to any and everyone he could think of. _Don’t die on me, Rin!_

A steady rhythm of beeps sounded from the machine. Shiemi collapsed to her knees in relief, hugging a reluctant looking Izumo. Bon’s head hung as his fingers curled into his thick, brown curls. He turned his head to the ceiling and quietly murmured, “Thank the lord.” 

Yukio was clutching Shima as if his life depended on it, still shaking badly from the scare as the pinkette soothingly ran his fingers through the brunette’s hair. Ryuji looked over to see Shura’s head against the wall, trying to calm herself. He sighed gently and rested a hand on her shoulder. The red-head looked up and nodded at the silent promise. 

A rushed knock caught the attention of the exwires as a female doctor smiled reassuringly at them, “Rin is stabilized for now, but we need to get him into surgery to close his wounds or he may not recover next time.” 

Shura pushed herself forward with a newfound devotion for her kid brother, “Well then let’s make damn sure there isn’t a next time!” 

The doctor nodded and ran into the room, barking some orders and they wheeled Rin away. This time, they didn’t feel as strong of a need to follow. Etsu and Kuro, on the other hand, jumped up to lie next to the unconscious boy. 

The doctors didn’t seem to mind, they also still hadn’t paid any mind to the dark blue tail hanging limply over the edge of the bed. A soft but firm voice coughed behind them, trying to gain their attention. Suguro whipped around in surprise, as he had been helping Shiemi off the floor when the throat cleared. 

Standing before them was a middle-aged woman with vibrant, sky blue eyes and shoulder length dark, ash blonde hair. She held out her hand, “My name Gayle, I’ll be Rin’s nurse while he is here.” 

Yukio stepped forward and took her hand. She smiled, “I know this may be… soon, but I wanted to warn you,” Bon’s eyebrows pinched together tightly, “after what your friend went through, his recovery will take time. Both physically and mentally. And, I’m here, I’ve dealt things similar to what you are going through. If you need to talk, I’m always ready to listen.” 

Yukio nodded and thanked her quietly. Shiemi took this chance and leaped forward and grabbed the nurse by the forearm, the woman seemed far from surprised, “Will Rin be able to walk again!” 

Yukio bit his lip and whispered, quietly answering her question, “I don’t think so, Shiemi.” 

The young blonde’s green eyes filled with tears as they spilled down her cheeks. Gayle spoke out to add to Yukio’s answer, “Actually, he might be able to.” 

Yukio jumped forward and shook Gayle by her shoulders, “How?” 

Shima pulled Yukio back by his collar, “Sorry about that.” 

The nurse shrugged it off, “It’s fine. But, my granddaughter could help him walk again.” 

“How?!” 

She stepped back a few paces and called through an open door, “TJ? Could you come out please?” The door opened to reveal a teen girl with shocking white, shoulder length hair and ocean blue eyes. Her skin was badly scarred and ivory patches extended over her tanned skin. As Bon looked closer, he could see that she had heavy scarring between her eyes and down her chest, which seemed to have the worst of it. She limped slightly, favoring one side as she clutched tightly at her waist. 

That’s when Suguro noticed the blood staining her ripped clothes and the six, black lines drawn across her wrist. She was panting heavily, almost as if she had just come out of a fight. She looked up at Gayle and smiled, “I’m alright,” Her voice was shaking badly and she was clearly _not_ alright, “it’s gone.” 

Her grandmother seemed to have forgotten all about the group standing there as her lips pressed together tightly, “I’m checking your side once we finish here.” 

TJ nodded and bent down to grab a satchel from the ground before swinging it over her shoulders and turning to the group. She flashed a brilliant smile. From the flinch of the other exwires, he knew they felt the fakeness of it too, “Sorry about that. A… demon got into the hospital, I just had to exorcise it.” 

Bon wanted to point out the lie, but something told him it would not go over well with either of the women if he did, so he closed his mouth tightly and nodded, “Gayle said you could help Rin walk again. How will that work if his leg is missing?” 

TJ rolled her eyes slightly, something seemed to change in the way she walked as she started forward. Less pain crossed her face with each step, and she almost seemed to… change. It was too hard for words to explain. As she got closer, she reached over to her arm and tapped something. Her hand gripped her shoulder as she pulled gently. 

Her arm came off completely. Shima shrieked and Shiemi looked like she wanted to jump forward and help the girl. Izumo gagged and Bon bit his lip. But, Shura’s expression was the most startling, she didn’t seem fazed at all. She even looked like this was a normal occurrence. If he didn’t know any better, he’d say she was smirking. 

Bon turned back to the white-haired girl. He was watching the girls face, her eyes seemed to turn shades to a lighter blue. Something was off about this girl, and Bon didn’t like it. 

TJ breathed deeply, “A few years ago, I got into a really bad accident. A building collapsed on me,” She put her arm back, and Suguro caught a glimpse of wires, “when the fire department found me, I was in really bad shape. But, somehow I was still breathing. A doctor and inventor got their hands on me. They were crazy, but I guess I’m thankful they did get to me. They replaced my shattered bones and crushed limbs with machines and gears. In the end, I was more machine than human.” 

“How much, exactly?” Koneko inquired, poking at the girl’s arm now that it was attached. She didn’t seem to mind too much. 

“59.63% of me is a machine. You can do the math for the rest,” Her face was blatant as Koneko muttered numbers to himself. 

“You’re only 40% human!?” He squawked after a few seconds. 

The white-haired girl nodded before speaking with her ragged tone, “I can make Rin a leg as well. I know enough about machines to do so. In the end, it’ll be hard to notice anything is different unless you change the coloring codes.” 

Shura stepped forward, “When can you begin?” 

“I need to take measurements, but I don’t want to do so today. That’d be pushing too much on his plate. And I’m not in the best state right now, either. But, I can start as soon as possible. I’d prefer him to be out of the hospital when I attach it though. The other doctors here don’t know about the type of prosthetic I use,” TJ glanced up at Shura, “when Rin’s ready, you can call me. You know how to.” 

Shura scoffed and leaned down to mutter something in the girl’s ear. TJ glared angrily before growling, “I am well aware that I didn’t get a chance to leave like I was supposed to. The Mant-the demon cut me off. I wasn’t going to let you deal with it and run the risk of getting marked. I’ll leave as soon as I can, after helping them, of course.” 

Shura nodded before marching off and proclaiming over her shoulder, “I’m getting some Chūhai. Call me when Rin’s out o’ surgery.” 

TJ growled some colorful curses in a multitude of different languages before turning back to them, anger coating her words thickly, “I’m going to get myself stitched up and start gathering materials. Get the red-haired _matris futuor_ to call me when Rin’s ready.” 

The girl walked off, her grandmother had her head buried in her hands, “I’m sorry,” Said the woman kindly, “she has zero filter. It doesn’t help that she’s going through a hard time right now.” 

Bon growled, “She should learn some manners. She’s even worse than Shura.” 

Gayle bit her lip, “She had a good reason to be, I promise,” She waved them down the hall and stepped through a door, “this is where Rin will be staying. Just sit tight, he’ll be out soon.” 

The nurse stepped out and slowly shut the door before continuing down the hall in the same direction TJ had gone. Izumo scowled at the empty hall before promptly scoffing, “Does anyone else feel like they missed something between Shura and TJ?” 

“Yup,” They all replied easily in unison. They continued to think, failing to notice the door open and Shura step through with a bag of drinks. She silently stayed in the shadows, sensing something off. Bon rubbed his temple in thought, “Before she took off her arm, I could have sworn something about her changed… physically.” 

“Almost like she wasn’t human,” Yukio muttered. 

“Well duh,” Shura exclaimed, handing them each a can of juice, “she’s not. And she ain’t no demon neither. She’s something that shouldn’t even be alive. But, you shouldn’t worry about that right now.” That last part was added when Shiemi tried to ask about the strange girl. The doe-eyed blonde screwed her mouth shut and took a tentative sip of the juice. 

A few minutes later, after an uncomfortable silence covered the room, and very unconscious Rin was wheeled in and hooked up to some IVs and monitors by Gayle. She wrote a few things down on a clipboard before walking out of the room and leaving them to crowd around. 

This gave them the chance to get a good look at him. He was thinner than usual and sickly pale, so unlike his porcelain skin. His hair and tail were matted and tangled in ways that couldn’t feel good. Ryuji didn’t even try to fight the urge to try to untangle the messy mop on the younger’s head. 

Bandages were wrapped securely around his entire torso and many sections of his arms and over his right eye. Ryuji had no doubt his legs looked much the same. Thick gauze was also around the eldest Okumura’s tail. Bon couldn’t help but feel bad for the doctor that got stuck with wrapping the limb. 

They all sat around the room quietly, waiting for their friend to wake up.


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So sorry this is late! There is a tiny subplot in here that has nothing to do with this story and everything to do with an actual book I'm writing. Sorry about it but don't get too worried about what happens to that mystery character, at least not yet. ;p

Rin was slow to come to. The first thing he noticed was how sore his body was. It ached with every breath as his chest expanded against constricting material. He was aware of his brother’s soft hand holding his own. Pricks of needles sat uncomfortably in arms, though they didn’t feel half as bad as the blades Angel stuck in him periodically. 

Soft voices were talking back and forth over simple things, though the half-demon didn’t quite catch _what_ exactly. His tail was sat like a heavyweight against the bed, the lack of motion telling Rin just how bad his condition truly was. 

Then, there was also the lack of weight--or total feeling to be honest--in his left leg. Pain shot up his body and he groaned in protest, forcing his eyes to open. One was completely dark from a bandage, the other blinded by white lights. Conversation stilled in the antibiotic scented room. 

The lights were too bright. He squinted and lazily flopped his arm over his eyes to shield himself from the unnaturally bright lights. 

“Hey, Rin?” A warbling voice from a certain doe-eyed blonde caught his attention as he carefully peeked out from under his arm. All he caught was the blonde hair, that was enough to get the teen to freak. He scrambled back, trying to put as much distance between him and the blonde. 

“Oi, Okumura,” Calloused hands pressed against his chest as the oldest Okumura gasped for breath. He was back there, in the cement room. And Angel was in front of him, holding that blasted whip as he prepared to lash his skin. It dripped with Holy Water, just like every day. 

He couldn’t breath, couldn’t _see!_ His shaking hands dug into his hair as he tried to take a breath. Someone was holding him against their chest, prying his hands away from his head. They were whispering gentle words, telling him to, “Breath, Rin. It’s alright.” 

“A-Angel….” The others saw the fear clouding his eyes. 

Shiemi looked down at her hands and bit her lip guiltily, “I’m gonna go.” 

Rin shook his head after a moment, realizing exactly what just happened, and put his head in his hands, “S-Shiemi, I’m sorry. I just-” 

“It’s fine, Rin. Don’t apologize,” She smiled sadly, “it’s not your fault.” 

Rin heard the door open and close as Shiemi disappeared from the room, “I’m sorry,” The son of Satan whispered, “I’m such a mess.” 

Bon hugged him tighter, while still trying not to injure him, “I think we all agree that this isn’t your fault. Angel did this, and he’s never going to hurt you again.” 

Shura smirked smugly, “That bastard lost his mind ages ago. I just made sure his head joined the party.” 

It took Rin a moment to understand what she had said. Angel was dead, gone from this world and he’d never hurt Rin again. Tears streamed down his face and he curled into the crook to Bon’s neck. He nodded slightly and thanked the red-head. 

Shura shrugged and turned to the exwires and exorcist, “It’s gettin’ late. Y’all need to get back to the dorm and sleep. No ‘buts’, none of you have slept enough since Rin was taken. Especially Four-Eyes over here.” She pointed over her shoulder at the angry and pouting younger Okumura. 

Everyone grumbled and started toward the door, “Hey, Bon?” The soft whisper almost went unnoticed by the others. Everyone but the monk who turned to the younger boy. He was curled into himself and seemed so small, so unlike what he usually looked like. It sent piercing daggers through his heart from the pain in the younger boys posture and eyes. So much pain. 

Suguro sighed and walked back to the bed. Etsu looked up at him and he swore there was a glimmer of mischief in her violet eyes, “What is it, Rin?” 

The younger bit his lip, “Could you… stay with me? I don’t want to be alone.” 

Suguro blinked in surprise before realizing what he had asked. The bicolor haired monk smiled slightly and nodded, “Hey, guys? I’m gonna stay here, make sure he’s okay.” 

Yukio glared at him, ready to storm forward and sit next to Rin in protest. Shima grabbed their teacher by the shirt and pulled him fully into the hall, “No, you’re getting sleep, Yukio!” He shouted over his shoulder at his sleep-deprived boyfriend. Shura rolled her eyes and closed the door as well as shut off the lights, leaving the two exwires in the room alone. 

Rin squeaked in the darkness and tried to grasp for Bon’s hand. The monk sighed and gently sat on the bed and twined their hands together. He could feel the younger relax just slightly. The older boy gently reached forward and brushed blue-black hair out of the younger boy’s bandaged face, “Sleep, I won’t leave.” 

Rin bit his lip before nodding and curling up as best he could to get comfortable, “You need sleep, too.” Rin muttered in the quiet room. 

“I’ll sleep on the chair.” 

The demon’s head shook and he patted the bed, “I-I can share.” 

Bon’s face turned to a very unflattering beat red and he couldn’t have been more thankful for the semi-darkness. Rin paused for a moment, “Did I read things wrong?” 

“What?” 

“You kissed me when you found me. Or, was that just to get my attention?” 

Bon looked down at his feet, “I didn’t think you’d remember that.” 

Rin squinted his cerulean blue eye at the monk, “But you meant it?” 

Suguro yelped and practically jumped, scaring the injured boy and causing him to flinch, “Sorry,” Bon whispered and gently cupped the younger boy’s cheeks, “I didn’t mean to scare you.” 

Rin bit his lip and looked up at amber eyes. He couldn’t help but want Bon to answer him, and for it to be the answer he was hoping for. Bon leaned down carefully as Rin gasped. They were mere millimeters apart, breathing the same air. They were so close, Rin couldn’t help but close the distance and leaned up to brush their lips together. 

It was the barest of touches but sent jolts of electricity through them. Bon captured his lips and kissed him again. It was messy and uncoordinated, noses bumping into each other and teeth clacking together. But the feeling was there, the longing and need for each other. Both had their eyes shut tight, Rin hands ghosting across Bon’s forearms. Calloused hands gently supporting the younger’s neck and rubbing his thumb against Rin’s cheek. 

They could have stayed like that forever and be content. Neither wanted to move. But, Mother Nature had other plans and the need for air became too great for either to ignore. The two separated and panted for breath. Rin rested his head against Bon’s and he chuckled, “I guess you did mean it, Ryuji.” 

Ryuji’s face turned a shade darker at the sound of Rin using his given name. It was almost like he was testing, seeing what the monk would do. So he smiled gently, “I never said it was ‘no’...Blueberry.” 

Rin gasped dramatically and swatted at Bon’s shoulder, “That moment was so nice, then you had to go and ruin it.” 

Bon laughed joyfully and put his hands up to avoid the playful swats aimed at his face, “What would you like me to call you? Princess?” 

“No, I call you that already. You can’t take your own name.” 

Ryuji smiled and hummed, “Alright. What about….Sunshine?” 

Rin’s eyes widened fearfully and his head shook rapidly as he buried his face in his hands. Bon’s face paled and he quickly pulled Rin close to him as harsh breaths were all he could hear. Shallow sobs escaped his mouth, “Please, don’t. Ang- _he_ called me that.” Bon’s breath caught in his throat, “every morning, he’d wake me up by stabbing me in the leg or doing _s-something_. The first thing I saw and heard every morning was his blond hair and him calling me _that_.” 

Bon’s lips parted in shock, that’s why Rin had freaked when he’d woken up. The first thing he’d seen was _Shiemi_. “Oh, Rin. I’m so sorry.” 

Rin nodded and curled closer to his fellow exwire. Everything was quiet for a moment before Rin’s harsh breath quieted and he whispered, “I like ‘Blueberry’.” 

Bon chuckled and gently kissed the top of Rin’s head. 

Rin hummed happily. He’d missed the warmth of other people so much and he didn’t want to let go. _**If you’re done with the sappy shit, could you please SLEEP!**_

Rin gasped and pulled away to look down at the floor where Etsu was looking up at him in the most deadpanned expression he’d seen. Though, her eyes looked slightly amused, “Etsu?!” 

Bon turned to the floor, his brows pinched together adorably. Etsu rolled her violet eyes, **_It’s cute and all. But some of us, AKA you, need sleep._**

“Sorry, Mom,” Rin muttered. It wasn’t too far off, to be honest. Etsu had acted like a worried mother when he was captured. Taking care of him and almost never leaving his side. Ryuji’s eyes pinched together confusedly. Rin sighed, “I’ll explain later…” Despite the silence, Bon could hear the unspoken words, _or when I’m ready_. 

Suguro nodded, knowing he might never get an answer. But he was alright with that. This was something that would be following Rin for the rest of his life, no matter how much Bon hated to say it. They’d all have to help him through this, to let him talk on his own terms. 

So instead of pestering the younger exwire for answers, he pulled him close and laid down on the bed with Rin curled into his chest. The soft beats of the monitors and steady sighs from Rin lulled the monk to sleep. 

*** 

Waking to the sound of snickering used to drive Rin crazy, or just waking up in general. But now, it was welcome. Didn’t mean he was going to move, though. He was too warm, curled against Ryuji comfortably. And he was pretty sure Etsu was laying at the end of the bed, as well. 

Someone playfully poked his cheek, “Hey, Rin. The doctors here, she needs to check on you.” 

Rin groaned and curled closer to the boy who had spoken, “Go to Hell,” He mumbled, knowing he wouldn’t win this fight. But, he’d still make it difficult. He could almost hear Bon roll his eyes. The older boy sat up easily and jumped off the bed. 

Rin sat up and pouted at the loss. Shura was cackling madly in the corner. Yukio’s glasses glinted as an amused smile stretched across his face, “What’re you looking at, Spotty-Four-Eyes?” 

“And he’s back,” Koneko chuckled. 

“When’d you guys get here?” 

“A few minutes ago,” Shima shrugged, “we were going to wake you, but Bon said to let you sleep.” 

Bon chuckled, “And Etsu tried to bite him when he tried waking you.” 

Rin’s mouth parted before bobbing his head, “Sounds like her,” The half-demon scanned the room, noticing all his friends, but the lack of one, “where’s Shiemi?” 

Izumo rubbed the back of her neck, “Haven’t seen her since she ran out yesterday.” 

Rin’s lips parted. He felt horrible. He’d made her leave because of how he’d acted. Stupid, stupid stupid! Etsu sauntered over to him and licked the tears off his cheeks. The message was clear, he needed to stop blaming himself. But, if he wasn’t a demon, none of this would have happened. His friends would be safe, Shiemi wouldn’t hate him and- 

_**BAM!**_

Rin jumped and scrambled away, almost falling off the bed, luckily Ryuji caught him and sat him back down. It took a few moments to get his breathing under control, but when he did, he almost lost it again. 

Shiemi was standing in front of them, her green eyes shone happily. She was her normal self, except for one detail, “You died your hair?!” The girl in question pulled one of the vibrant purple locks to the side and nodded. 

“I had an idea as to why you panicked, so I thought I’d eliminate the factor,” Shiemi shrugged like it was no big deal and looked over at Rin who looked like he was about to burst into tears. Ryuji had his hand on the younger’s shoulder, supporting him and keeping him from falling yet again. 

Rin nodded and smiled thankfully. He had to admit, her hair looked a lot prettier than when it was blonde. That, or he was being biased. A throat cleared behind Shiemi, scaring the boy into bumping into Bon yet again, “Sorry to interrupt, but I need to check on Rin.” 

The room went silent. The other exwires were able to recognize the woman from before, “Of course, Gayle.” Yukio smiled stiffly and stepped aside, allowing the doctor to step forward. 

Rin would be lying if he said he didn’t feel uncomfortable. He’d never been one to like the spotlight, and this just added to it. Everyone in the room was watching him like a hawk, almost like if they turned away for even a moment, Rin would disappear. 

Rin curled into himself as Gayle checked over him. He watched her hum to herself and say, “You might be able to leave tomorrow.” Everyone gaped at her, “your demon healing seems to be reacting now and closing your wounds on ‘hyperspeed.’” 

Rin pressed closer to Ryuji, “You know I’m a-” 

“Of course!” Gayle exclaimed, cutting off the half-demon with the wave of her hand, “I don’t care though. You’re not like most.” 

Ryuji narrowed his eyes skeptically, “You act like this is a normal occurrence.” 

She hummed and wrote something on her clipboard, “I have to deal with my adopted granddaughter, TJ. If I should be afraid of anyone, it’s her. But I’m not.” 

“Adoptive?” Rin squeaks. 

Gayle nodded, “Her parents gave her up when she was little. She and her twin brother were adopted by my son and his wife. Let’s just say, they aren’t normal.” There was a mischievous twinkle in those blue eyes that unsettled the group. 

Rin clenched Bon’s hand tighter, his bandaged tail wound around the monk’s waist. Earning them some raised eyebrows from the others. Gayle reached over and gently removed needles, leaving bandages, “We’ll see how your condition is tomorrow. Then you will know if you can leave.” 

Rin grumbled something incoherent to the nurse and watched her walk out, “I don’t like her.” 

“Wait ‘til you meet TJ. She’s a real piss pot,” Shura growled, her fists clenched. 

“Why would I meet her?” Rin questioned at the same time Yukio said, “What is it between you two?” 

Shura turned her head between the twins in surprise, “Jesus, now I know what Shiro meant when he said your Twin Telepathy is scary.” Both glared hauntingly at the red-head, “OK, OK. Shesh. To answer Rin’s question, TJ offered to make you a prosthetic leg that won’t make it obvious it’s there.” 

“And my question?” 

Shura sighed, “Remember how I said she’s not human? Well, she’s not an exorcist either.” 

“But the demon she was fighting-” 

Shiemi was cut off almost immediately by the booming laugh coming from Shura, “Demon my ass! It was no demon, it was a hu-” Shura gasped and her mouth clamped shut. After a few moments of trying to talk, her mouth opened, “Dammit. I hate that damned oath!” 

“What?” 

Shura groaned, “Nevermind. It’s nothing for you to be worried about.” 

Rin huffed and tilted his head to the side, he hadn’t noticed when he had lain back on the bed, but he blamed it on the extreme tiredness. Deciding to change the subject, Rin looked over at his brother, “When was the last time you got a full night of sleep, ‘Kio?” 

Yukio tensed, “One, you haven’t called me that for a long time.” 

“Yeah, yeah,” Rin waved his hand in the air aimlessly, “When was the last time you slept… for a full night?” The last part was added when Yukio tried to claim yesterday. The younger twin immediately closed his lips. 

Rin watched Yukio go through a series of emotions. The half-demon narrowed his eyes and turned to look at Shima, who he _knew_ had an answer for him. The pink haired boy wrapped his arms around Yukio’s waist from behind and propped his chin on the brunette’s shoulder, “The night before you were taken.” 

Rin sat up suddenly, ignoring the protesting pain that flared in his torso, “YUKIO FUCKING OKUMURA!” Shima stepped away with his hands up in surrender, Bon following close behind. 

Shura growled as the twins started arguing, “Holy mother of God! Even when one’s sleep deprived and the other is in the fucking hospital, they’re still at each other's throats.” 

Ryuji rolled his eyes, watching with slight amusement, “Seems pretty normal to me. Least there’s that.” 

All other voices from the exwires were cut off by Rin’s overly annoyed voice, “I don’t care, Yukio! Even with the word ‘murderer’ carved into my arm. Even with being whipped and shot and beaten every day, I _survived_. Which is something you won’t be doing in a few moments because you’re about to fall face first into the floor from exhaustion if you don’t _sleep_!” 

Yukio’s eyes widened in surprise as Izumo leaned forward to ask Shura, “Did he just use-” 

“Yup,” Bon slapped his face with his palm, “he used his brother’s guilt.” 

Rin pointed accusingly at his brother and growled, “You. Sleep. Now!” They were rewarded with Yukio storming out of the room, Shima following with the excuse of making sure he wouldn’t pass out on the way there. 

Shiemi whistled, “I-I’m going to get everyone some….uh….food.” 

Izumo and Koneko ran after her, yelling, “Me too!” 

Shura glared at Rin, “Why did you say that?” 

Rin shrugged, though he looked slightly panicked from that confession, “I-I knew he wouldn't lis-listen if I just told him to sleep. But I re-really regret it.” Bon saw that his eyes glossed over slightly and gently sat next to the younger teen. Rin’s lower lip quivered slightly and he curled into himself. Bon gently hugged him, hoping it would help make everything alright.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So..... how are you guys liking it? it's mainly going to be fluff and comfort from here on out. So if that isn't your thing *shrug* sorry.


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I am so so so sorry this is late! I got extremely sidetracked and couldn't think of how this should play out. And not to mention I left you on a cliffhanger! I'm so bad at this.

True to the doctor’s words, he was released the next day. He still had stitches and bandages covering most of his person, but he would finally be somewhere familiar. Ukobach had practically started yelling at him when he was carried through the door. 

Rin wasn’t going to lie, he liked being carried on Ryuji’s back. It gave him an excuse to curl closer and hide in the crook of the older’s neck. He had learned from his time at the hospital that it was his new favorite spot to curl into when Ryuji held him. 

But, there was also the downside of not being able to walk. He felt completely and utterly useless. If there was an attack, he wouldn’t be able to do anything. And he hated it. He didn’t want his friends to need to protect him because he couldn’t himself. 

Ukobach had jumped onto the table and started lecturing him on how he looked like the only thing he’d eaten in the past week was water. 

Rin bit his lip, that was more true than he’d care to admit. The half-demon’s hands fidgeted in his lap as the floor became extremely interesting. The young teen curled into the oversized sweatshirt Ryuji had lent him. 

The kitchen demon huffed after a few minutes and sauntered back into the kitchen to make dinner. The room fell into a hushed silence, nobody dared speak. 

Rin’s blue eyes stayed trained on the ground, his fingers picked nervously at the hem of the soft sweatshirt. Ryuji gently twined there hands together, rubbing soothing circles on Rin’s scarred knuckles. 

“So,” Shima muttered apprehensively, “can you tell us-” 

“No,” Rin growled dangerously, the same voice he used when threatening Angel. Rin shuddered involuntary. Ryuji’s hand tightened reassuringly and gently pulled him closer. The younger went willingly and leaned against the monk. 

Yukio stood, putting his hands on the table and leaning forward, “Nii-san, please. We’d be able to understand what you’re going through. It would help!” 

“Dammit, Okumura!” Bon glared at the younger twin and hugged Rin to his side. His amber eyes daring anyone to go against what he had said. But, there was always one person that was willing to go against the clear warning. 

That person happened to be Shura, but that came as no surprise, “Why don’t you just suck it up and tell us already?!” 

Rin curled into himself, making himself smaller than normal, “Please… I can’t.” 

“That’s bullshit!” Yukio yelled. Rin’s blue eyes widened in fear, “you used to tell me everything. Why can’t you let me help you?” 

Rin’s mouth opened to speak, that’s when it happened. Etsu jumped up, growling at the door. The second Rin turned a dart shot at him. Due to his injuries, he hadn’t been able to dodge out of the way. 

Rin stood, leaning against Ryuji as Yukio shot the man down almost immediately. The dart sunk into the black haired boy’s neck. He hissed and brought his hand up to draw it out. He looked at the contents of the dart, the same used to knock out demons. 

Etsu whimpered and back away, **_Oh no, red-_**

“-Liquor,” Rin finished. 

“What’s ‘Liquor’?” Shima asked. 

Rin’s heart dropped as the dart fell out of his hand. He didn’t have time to answer or correct before the pain started. He cried out gripping his head in terrible pain. 

Bon froze as he looked down at the younger boy in shock. He was whimpering, biting his lip as tremors passed through his body. He knelt beside Rin in confusion, “Rin? What’s-” 

He was cut of by the blood curdling scream tearing itself from his boyfriend’s throat. Shiemi jumped forward, “What’s happening? What’s wrong with Rin?!” 

Every single one of them were freaking out, until Izumo got the idea to summon her Byakko's. Etsu was quick to communicate with them, and the answer they got was terrifying, “It’s called Red Liquor,” Mike translated, “it’s one of the ways Angel… uh… tortured Rin.” 

“What do you do?!” Yukio screamed over his brother. 

There was a pause before they were answered, “Hold him down. He’ll try anything to stop it.” Everyone was hesitant. Bon was the first to lunge forward, pulling the younger teens head into his lap. The others followed not far after. Yukio and Shima were trying to hold the writhing demon down by his shoulders as Shura kept his leg in place. 

The screams were the worst. They were bone chilling, sending waves of panic through the exwires and exorcists in the room. Kuro and Ukobach were crying, trying to nuzzle up to their friend. Etsu was pacing restlessly, like she’d seen this before, and she probably had. 

Ryuji’s hand ran through messy blue-black hair, trying to sooth Rin. Shiemi was sobbing, pulling out herbs to use when this was over, “How long is this going to last?” She cried pitifully. 

Uke was the first to answer the purplette, “Etsu said it takes longer each time he gets dosed. The first time it took mere minutes. The last time, almost and hour.” 

Bon gulped and continued to whisper gentle words to calm the pained demon. Bloody tears began to stream down his face, trickling out of his mouth. Koneko yelped, everyone looked on in shock. 

Bon clenched his jaw, using his thumb to wipe away the unnatural tears from Rin’s pale skin. Rin screamed out louder than before, his mouth moving to form words inaudible to human ears. Izumo turned to her familiars, “What is he saying?” 

The two Byakko demon were stammering, noticeably unsettled by the words coming from their friend’s mouth. They didn’t have the time to answer before the words from the eldest Okumura were loud enough it be deafening, “Just fucking **_Kill me!_** ” 

“N-Nii-san, you don’t mean that,” Yukio was pleading with his brother, begging him to stop. 

“End… end it, please,” Rin’s shallow breaths and miserable screams shattered Ryuji’s heart. 

He gently cupped the demon’s face, whispering to the boy he loved, “It’s alright, you’ll get through this. I promise.” 

Rin’s back arched off the floor as he howled in pain. Yukio had tears in his eyes, but refused to let them fall. 

*******

Bon had lost count on the time when it started. The screams were persistent until Rin’s throat was visibly hoarse as a small puddle of bloody tears had formed on the floor. Ryuji had been close to crying, as had they all. 

If it wasn’t for Etsu, they would never have known what was happening. She had told them the amount in the dart was significantly less than the amount he got in each does with Angel. If he was reacting this way to only a small amount, Ryuji didn’t want to know how he reacted to the amount he got with Angel. 

The screams had finally begun to calm down, leaving the monk’s ears ringing in the still silence. Shima and Shura carefully let go but never left the demon’s side, “R-Rin?” Shiemi choked out. 

Heartbreaking sobs were her answer, glistening tears streamed down his face. Bon gently pulled Rin into his lap and hugged him close. The half demon’s body quaked as he broke down in fear, “It’s alright, we’re here.” 

Shiemi stepped up, trying to convince Rin to let her help, she was only waved away. Yukio gently hugged his brother from behind, the others piling on around him. Etsu and Kuro had squeezed through the pile to nuzzle against Rin. 

“How often did he do that to you?” Shura whispered, it was the first time any of them had seen her look so heartbroken. 

Rin curled closer to Ryuji, his bandaged tail curled around the monk’s wrist. He took a shaky breath, “It depended on… on the day,” Yukio flinched at the hoarse crocks coming from his brother, “usually every morning. Sometimes he’d give it to me at night, too.” 

The rest of the evening, Rin refused to let go of his boyfriend. His tail as always curled around a limb or his waist. And he would cling onto his back when he needed to move. Ryuji would be lying if he said he didn’t like how clingy Rin was. 

Currently, they were all lounging around the makeshift living room they made by throwing a bunch of mattresses and pillows into a singular room. Everyone was doing their own thing, jumping into conversations when they wanted. Rin was using Bon’s lap as a pillow, his tail wrapped securely around the older teen’s waist. 

Ryuji had proceeded to run his finger’s through the Rin’s hair lovingly. Soft purrs began to resonant throughout the nearly silent room. The monk gawked as Shima cackled, “Oh, my God! He purrs!” He turned an evil look to his own boyfriend, “I wonder…” 

Yukio tried swatting the pinkette’s hand away, which turned into a mini wrestling match. The exwires watched with a amusement. Yukio had somehow managed to get himself pinned to the floor with Shima straddling his hips. The room froze, all thinking the same thing. 

Izumo was the first to react by throwing a pillow. The soft fluff connecting with Shima’s face, sending him tumbling off Yukio in surprise, “Get a room lovebirds.” 

The lovebirds in question sat up hastily, looking away from each other. Ryuji chuckled at the image of his teacher red faced from embarrassment. Koneko was quick to bring his phone up and snap a picture, claiming it was so Rin could see that Yukio wasn’t a ‘Stone faced bitch’ when the two protested. Yukio didn’t appreciate the nickname and sent death glare to his sleeping brother. 

“Are you ok, Shura?” Shiemi questioned lightly, turning the whole room to their other teacher. 

The red head was looking down at small black, clicker-like object. Shura tilted her head back and sighed, “Should we call her?” 

Yukio huffed, “Gayle said it’s Rin’s choice. We should talk to him about it.” 

“Talk to me about what?” Rin was sitting up lazily, rubbing the sleep out of his uncovered eye. The half-demon studied them for a moment before crawling into Ryuji’s lap and curling into the monk’s chest. 

Soft vibrations let him know Bon was laughing slightly. Shura clears her throat, directing Rin’s attention to her, “TJ, the girl the doctor was talking to you about, she offered to make you a prosthetic leg. But, she wants to make sure you actually want one first.” 

“Of course I want it! I could walk again!” Rin was smiling from ear-to-ear. The tip of his tail was flicking around in excitement, leaving the warmth of Ryuji’s waist. 

Shura stood, putting her hands up, “Fine, all call her. I’m just going to put it out there, I don’t like her. But, if she’s going to help you, them I guess I can put up with her,” Shura was rubbing her hand across the back of her neck. 

Rin’s tail was waving around happily. Ryuji was blushing furiously at the way Rin had started leaning forward and his tail was brushing against the monk’s neck playfully. The worst part was Rin didn’t even realize, he was too busy thinking about being able to have both legs again. 

Konekomaru had his hand over his mouth, trying his hardest to keep from laughing at how red Ryuji’s face was getting. Shima didn’t even try, he was rolling on the floor, howling at the two. Rin turned to them, cocking his head to the side in a way that reminded the exwires of a curious kitten, “What are you laughing at?” 

“Y-your… Oh, my God! I… holy shit!” Shima was a stuttering mess and Shiemi looked too embarrassed to answer his question. Izumo flat out refused and told him to figure it out on his own. 

“R-Rin. I love you, but could you get you ass and tail out of my face?” 

Rin blanched and whipped around, instantly seeing the red-faced exwire who had spoken. Rin sat back down and crossed his arms, face twisted in a pout at the others laughing at him, “‘S not _that_ funny.” 

Bon rested his chin on the young boy’s shoulder, “Don’t worry. You were excited,” The monk kissed the demon behind the ear before pulling him closer protectively. 

Shura stormed back into the room, a sour expression twisting her face, “Rin, I love ya but that girl I swear!” Rin turned his head to shoot a confused expression to Ryuji. He shrugged as Shura continued, “The nerve of that girl! The second she attaches your leg, I’m running her through with my sword.” 

“What’d she-” 

“You do realize I can still hear you, right?” Shura froze and grabbed the small black clicker-like, thing. 

“Asshole,” Shura growled into the small device. 

“Not my fault you,” There was a cry of pain and a crack of bone, “Shit! Look, you called at a very bad time!” A high pitched whistle sounded then a crack of a building. A series of well worded curses were uttered through the girls mouth. 

Shura was worrying at her lip. She closed her eyes and sighed, “Do you need help?” 

“No, I’m just,” TJ was groaning in pain, “I’m just stuck under a building, I’ll be fine.” 

Shura’s glared at the device, “I’m coming.” 

“No you are not. I’ve already dealt with the problem. I’ll be there in a few minutes,” The device went to static before cutting off entirely. 

Shura groaned and slammed her head against the wall, “Stubborn bitch.” 

Rin turned his head to whisper in Bon’s ear, “Am I the only one that gets the feeling I’m missing something?” 

“Trust me, you’re not the only one,” Shima piped up, “at the hospital, they were at each other’s throats. 

“And now Shura’s worried about her,” Yukio sighed, “can you tell us what’s going on?” 

“I wish. But, I promised her I wouldn’t tell. Apparently, just _me_ knowing is dangerous enough. Sorry,” Rin had never seen her look this sincere and worried about someone. 

There was complete and utter silence, the entire room was waiting with baited breath for anything. That’s when the device in Shura’s hand crackled to life, “H-hey, so… I kinda sorta maybe have a piece of metal sticking out of my back. Don’t freak out when I get there.” 

“Don’t freak out!” Shura screeched. Rin whimpered and covered his ears, shying away from the pissed off exorcist, “you don’t just say something like-” 

“Turn on the news,” TJ cut off Shura with a mumble, “I’ll be there in a few minutes. I’ll be fine, just need to stitch myself up.” 

Shura growled, “Going to kill her.” 

“I’m still here, and please do.” 

Rin scrunched his eyebrows together in concern, “Are you alright?” 

“Peachy.” 

Izumo smirked, “I like her.” 

“T-That’s a first,” Her breathing was getting slower, pacing herself to keep awake, “can you open the door?” 

Everyone sprung up and bolted down the stairs to the door. Shura threw it open and lunged at the girl, pulling her into a hug. The white haired girl squeaked, “Air… is needed.” 

Shura pulled away, “This doesn’t mean I like you.” 

TJ arched an eyebrow and gave her the most unimpressed look imaginable. She stepped through, giving the exwires a full view at the damage done to her body. She was covered in rubble and dust, pieces of glass and stone sticking out of scrapes and holes in her skin. Her snow white hair was streaked with blood and something that smelled like oil or gas. 

Rin gagged at the horrid smells assaulting his overly sensitive nose. She pushed through, “I’m going to get cleaned up before I take measurements and talk to you about it, ‘kay?” 

Rin nodded as Shiemi stepped forward, “Let me-” 

“I’ve got it,” She leveled a stone cold glare at the girl with violet hair, causing the girl in question to back up. TJ turned her head slightly to address Shura, “Dakota and I got split up, told her to meet me here. You alright with that?” Rin had to distinct impression that she wasn’t taking ‘no’ for an answer. 

Shura crossed her arms and cocked her hip to the side, “I’m not sure how the Byakko and Kuro will react to-” 

“She’s my familiar, if they don’t get along, then we’ll talk,” She started walking away, her back coming into full view. Yukio and Shiemi cried out and rushed forward, trying to help the girl who was obviously getting annoyed at their attempts. 

Rin looked up to glance at Bon, both sharing a look. Bon looked over at TJ who was clearly on the verge of panicking from all the attention, “Lay off guys,” Bon grumbled at the same moment Rin ordered, “Kio, Shiemi leave her alone.” 

Both doctors turned to face surprised expressions on them. Yukio flinched at the hard glare Rin had turned on him. The teens backed away from TJ, giving her room to breath. The older girl sighed, her muscles losing a small amount of the tension built up in her body. 

TJ was about to turn away when Shura growled, “I’m not letting you roam alone, at least take someone with you.” 

TJ turned again, a cocky smirk painted across her face. She crossed her arms and cocked her hip to the side, mimicking the way Shura had stood earlier. The teen leaned closer, completely ignoring the pain in her back, “What, are you worried?” 

“You wish. I just want to make sure you won’t steal something,” Shura scoffed, watching pain flash across the 18-year-old’s face after aggravating the bloody wound on her back. Sura closer her eyes and pointed to the hall, “just get cleaned up, your sarcastic comments can wait. Rin and Bon will go with you,” She quickly put her hand over Yukio’s mouth when he tried to protest, “they won’t crowd her, and Rin needs to change his bandages,” Yukio growled something about Shura being a bitch and stormed to the kitchen to find food. 

TJ turned to the two that were being forced to accompany her to the _freakin bathroom!_ Rin saw annoyance and terror flicker through the girl’s eyes before they were back to their unwavering blue, “Fine, but touch me and I twist your arm,” She growled. Rin could tell she was holding back a worse threat and was pretty sure it had something to do with not wanting him to panic. 

Bon leaned down and gently grabbed Rin from where he’d been sitting on the floor so as not to strain his boyfriend’s arms, “I still don’t like her.” 

Rin nodded as they started after the girl’s retreating form. The half-demon couldn’t help but feel there was something bigger going on that they didn’t know about, or would _ever_ know.


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is slower, there is a moment when you might get an adrenaline rush if you're that type of reader *shrug* who knows. But other wise, it's just some fluff. Hope you enjoy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm finally back to adding chapters more often!! Woop woop!

TJ refused to let them help, swatting them away when they stepped forward to help her clean the wounds on her body. One of the deeper gashes caused by glass and stone clearly needed stitches. Rin had been about to call Yukio in to help with that, until the girl pulled out a spool of medical thread and a traditional sewing needle. 

Rin winced when she pulled the silky thread through her skin, barely flinching from the obvious pain, “How do you do that?” Rin whispered. 

TJ paused and looked up, brown eyebrows pinched together in confusion, “What?” 

Rin rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly, looking up at the girl from where he sat on the sink. TJ had continued stitching the deeper wounds, skirting around the metal in her back. Rin watched as she poured hydrogen peroxide over gashes before wrapping bandages around them skillfully. 

“How do you not flinch? Yukio said that stitches are painful and not the most fun to do on yourself, especially with wounds as bad as that,” Bon looked over at Rin and gently rubbed his back, “and your hands aren’t shaking, I thought they would be from the pain.” 

Her mouth forms a silent “oh” before taking a deep breath as she pulls the thread tight, forcing the wound closed, “Lots of practice. I’ve been doing this for a while.” 

“How long exactly?” Bon questioned lightly, trying not to push the older girl over the edge, “do you have a meister in doctor?” 

TJ barked out a laugh before taking a deep breath to stop the giggles coming from her mouth, “Far from it. But, when you’ve been on the field as long as me with no break, you learn how to patch yourself up.” 

A gentle knock sounded at the door before the rest of the exwires, along with Shura and Yukio, stepped through. TJ narrowed her eyes, her muscles tensing, readying herself to jump up and bolt. Shura stepped in front of the door, blocking off the exit, “Dakota’s here. Yukio had to reset her front leg, looks like it got crushed by something.” 

She paled, eyes darting to the door worriedly. TJ nodded a thanks and eyed the group that refused to leave, “I’m guessing you’re not leaving me alone again?” 

Yukio nodded, bringing the black ball of fuzz over to the white-haired girl. The black fox growled at Yukio when he started stepping away, “I don’t think she likes me,” Yukio grumbled unhappily. Rin knew his brother loved animals, especially dogs, but he hid it because he didn’t want to drop his stone-faced facade. 

“Don’t take it too personally,” TJ smirked, Bon’s gut twisted itself into knots. He really didn’t like this girl, something was really off. 

Shiemi stepped forward cautiously, as if approaching a wild animal, “Let me help you with your back, you won’t be able to reach it enough to fix it,” TJ flinched away when the violet-haired girl gently touched her patchy skin. 

TJ bared wickedly sharp teeth, Rin tensed and reached for the Koma Sword on his back. Yukio and Shura had a similar reaction, drawing weapons and ready to attack the older girl if she so much as breathed the wrong way. 

Shiemi’s green eyes glared hauntingly at them, forcing them to lower their weapons, “Leave, I’ll take care of her,” Rin saw the determined look on her face and climbing shakily onto Bon’s back. Shooting one last glare to the two girls, the group left. Each tensed and ready to run back into the room (or be carried in Rin’s case) to protect their friend. 

But it never came. There were no screams, or yelps or cries. Rin could only pick up the occasional word and sometimes a sharp intake of breath from pain. He was able to catch Shiemi murmuring soothing words occasionally and Nii-chan making the cute “Nii!” sound she always did. 

Shura began pacing in worry, growling all the ways she’d kill TJ if she harmed Shiemi in any way. The door clicked open gently, Shiemi walking out with the biggest grin on her face, followed by a very pissed off white-haired girl. 

“What got her pissed off?” Shima muttered in Yukio’s ear. 

Rin was able to get a good look at the girl now that she wasn’t completely covered in blood and dirt. Her hair was snow white, pulled into a short ponytail, deep brown roots growing out slightly. Her crystal blue eyes calculating every movement and breath in the room. They were constantly flitting around, tense muscles readying her to jump away from anything showing a slight threat. Her battered shirt hand been cut just above the end of her ribs. 

Light colored scars decorated her body. Ivory patches stretching across tan skin. Four black lines decorated her wrist, similarly colored scars stretched across her collarbone, disappearing beneath her shirt and the many bandages wound tightly around her body. Rin couldn’t help but wonder what caused the strange colored scars. 

She glared at the group, “So, did you explain to Rin why I’m here, or do I need to do that, too?” 

“He knows the basics,” Yukio grumbled, his hand fingering the gun at his hip. 

TJ’s eyes followed the movement of his hands before scoffing, “Calm down, Short-stack. I’m not going to hurt you unless you attack me,” She deposited her bag on a table before bringing out a notepad and pencil, along with a simple measuring tape. 

Yukio faltered and gawked, “I’m taller than you!” Rin buried his head in the crook of Bon’s neck to hide his laughter. It didn’t work if his brother’s twitching eye was anything to go by. 

TJ smirked and started crawling on the small notepad, promptly ignoring Yukio’s comment. She paused every few seconds, as if listening to something, before scrawling some more. After a few moments, her eyes rose from the lined paper, “I need to know that you are 100% on board with this. I know you probably are, but I need to make sure.” 

Rin nodded enthusiastically, crawling down from Ryuji’s back. He used the rooster monk to help hold him up so he wouldn’t fall over. TJ smiled and continued to write notes down. He eyes caught on the black ball of fuzz the poked it’s head out of her bag. Koneko eyed the black fox warrily, seemingly wanting to pet it. 

“Who it this, by the way?” Shima pointed to the bag, stepping closer to the glaring animal. 

“That’s Dakota, my familiar,” Koneko cooed at the fox, reaching forward to pet her until TJ spoke up again, “I wouldn’t do that. Her previous ‘master’ was extremely abusive. She’s not used to other people touching her.” 

Koneko looked down sadly before shifting away. Kuro jumped up to rub his head against the bald monk’s leg, loud purrs resounded around the room. 

Rin glanced at the fox demon, thing, sadly. At the thought of what the fox was, Rin cocked his head to the side, “What type of demon is she, exactly?” Shura smirked, like Rin had just caught TJ in a bear trap. 

TJ just shrugged, “She’s a fox,” she said simply. 

“Like, a fox demon? A Byakko?” Izumo questioned, arching her eyebrow high. 

Etsu stepped away from the corner she’d been watching the whole ordeal from. The violet-eyed demon stepped toward the small fax that was crawling out of the satchel bag. The Byakko sniffed the injured animal/demon tentatively before backing up and looking at Rin. The half demon was wobbling on his foot precariously, Bon chuckled lightly and wrapped his arm around the younger boy’s waist, keeping him steady. 

**_She’s not lying. It’s just a fox._**

Rin opened his mouth to answer before TJ answered for him, “Yes, she is just a fox. And Dakota isn’t an it.” 

Rin gapped at the teen, looking back and forth between Etsu and the girl that wasn’t supposed to understand her, “Y-you can talk to demons?!” 

“Well, I’m talking to you, aren’t I?” She deadpanned. Dakota sat next to her leg and looked up at her, amber eyes watching her master. TJ chuckled slightly and reached her arm down, “alright, but be careful. You have one less leg to use right now.” 

Dakota huffed at her before using TJ’s arm as a handhold and climbing onto her shoulder. Her back legs rested on the strange girl’s shoulder and her front legs perched on top of TJ’s white hair. 

Golden eyes focused on the notepad in TJ’s hand, ears flicking around happily, “Didn’t see that one coming,” Bon mutter to himself, the others caught the sound and nodded in agreement. 

TJ snapped her fingers to gets the groups attention, “Sorry to interrupt this little swaray meeting, but I need to take measurements for your leg. I can’t just eyeball it,” She motioned to the table her satchel was resting on, “sit. I need to measure your leg.” 

Rin bit his lip before nodding, hobbling over to the table and plopping down on the actual table. TJ walked over, “Tell me if it gets uncomfortable, puts you in a flashback, or just want me to stop,” Rin nodded, thankful for her understanding his situation slightly. 

Tense silence filled the room as TJ continued to measure both of his legs, the scratch of her pencil the only sound in the room. Rin squirmed, the awkward tension thick enough to cut with a knife, until he couldn’t take it anymore. Before he could think his decision through, he blurted out, “Where are you from?” 

The entire room seemed to let out a breath, thankful for someone breaking the tension. TJ shrugged nonchalantly, “America.” 

Shima jumped forward, eager to take the conversation opportunity, “What’s it like there? I’ve always wanted to go there! Especially Vegas, I heard it’s amazing. Tons of hot people, too.” 

TJ looked up at the pinkette in surprise, “Good gods and stars, you’re like my brother!” TJ exclaimed loudly, wincing when she saw Rin cringe away from the noise. 

“How so?” Shima asked, puffing out his chest in pride, “he hot, too?” 

TJ smirked smuggly, “Nah, he’s just an annoying little shit. You two would get along great.” 

Yukio bursted out laughing, doubling over at the look of pure betrayal written across the exwire’s face. Shima stamped his foot and pointed to the ground angrily, “It’s not funny, Yukio!” 

“You’re right, you’re right,” Rin watched his brother bite his lip to school his features, “It’s not funny… ” 

Konekomaru jumped in at that moment, tears brimming in his eyes from laughing too hard, “It’s hilarious!” That sent to group spiralling into another fit of hysterics. Rin brought his shoulders up to her ears and chuckled forcefully. 

TJ tilted her head and scrunched her eyebrows together thoughtfully. After a moment, her eyes brightened like she’d gotten an idea. She turned away and rummaged through her bag before finding and pair of headphones, handing the device to Rin. TJ grabbed her phone from her back pocket and scrolled through, searching for something. Her patchy colored hands reached forward slowly to show him she wouldn’t do anything and pressed and button on the side of the device in his hand. 

There was an audible beep before she motioned for him to put them on and clicked a button, “This helps me when I get flashbacks,” She explained at his quizzical look. A sound of water flowing and wood creaking flowed gently through the headphones, “you can change it if you want.” She put her phone next to him, allowing him the option to scroll through. 

His curiosity got the better of him. He continued hitting the “skip” button until a sound labeled “Amazon Jungle” came up. Rin sighed softly, unknowingly catching the attention of his friends. 

Bon had gotten a real kick out of TJ’s comment to Shima earlier. And so did the rest of the group, if their laughing was anything to go by. A soft sigh from where Rin sat was what stilled their laughter. 

The half demon, as much as Bon wanted to deny it, had been tense and reserved ever since they’d gotten him back. Bon wasn’t entirely surprised, and neither were the others when he’d voiced his concerns in the hospital while grabbing food for the group. 

Ryuji knew it was a lot for Rin to let down his walls for them, even if it pained Bon to say it. But, when he turned to look at the table, he gapped. Rin’s eyes were closed, blue headphones situated over his ears. He couldn’t hear what was playing, but it must have been relaxing if Rin’s face was anything to go by. 

His hands weren’t fidgeting in his lap. A soft smile adorned his features. From what Bon saw, it looked like a string had been cut, allowing his half demon a chance to relax. The black haired boy was barely paying any mind to TJ, who was carefully winding the measuring tape around different parts of his legs before writing down the numbers carefully. 

Now that Bon wasn’t glaring daggers at her, and she seemed to think they weren’t watching, he was able to get a good look at her. Heavy scarring covered her entire figure. Anything from claw marks, to dagger slices, to bullet wounds. Bon caught the faint glint of an angry red blast scar on the girl’s shoulder. Shiemi had done a good job in helping her bandage up. 

It took a moment for Bon to notice her shaking, her hands had stilled as she pulled her hands to her chest, running them through her tied up hair. Rin’s eyes opened and he noticed her, breathing harsh, tears brimming in her eyes. Before anyone could do anything, she stood on shaky feet, “I-I need some fresh air,” She forced out, stumbling to the door. 

The door was thrown open as she ran to the tree line. Dakota was chasing after her, a look resembling worry plastered across her face. Everyone turned to Rin who squirmed under their gazes. Rin carefully put the headphones around his neck. 

“Do you know what happened?” Shiemi asked lightly, stepping forward to sit next to her friend. 

Rin nodded, looking at the ground. Yukio saw that the tension was back, bunching up under his brother’s skin, “I think she had a panic attack,” Rin mumbled lowly, the others barely able to hear him, “I saw the fear, the panic in her eyes. It was there, but gone so fast that I thought I only imagined it.” 

Ryuji gently reached forward and tapped the headphones curiously, “Where’d you get those? I didn’t see you walk away” 

Rin gripped Ryuji’s hand carefully, “TJ let me borrow them, said it helps her when she has flashbacks,” Yukio hummed thoughtfully and grabbed the older teen’s phone, “what are you doing?” 

Yukio ignored Rin’s question and brought out his own phone, “Finding out what you were listening to. Maybe it would help you relax more, help with the memories,” Rin nodded vigorously, leaning into Bon who had sat on the table as well. 

Everything was silent as minutes ticked by. Rin was content to curl up against Bon, resting his head on the monk’s chest while calloused but gentle fingers carded through his messy hair. Rin purred quietly, his black tail curling around Bon’s waist. 

Ukobach walked out, a large tray of food in hand. It was placed on the table, steaming from the heat of the meat. Rin’s mouth watered as everyone started piling food onto their plates. Bon chuckled at the look on rin’s face and added an extra helping to the plate in his hand before passing it to the half demon. Rin shoveled the hot food into his mouth, not caring that it burned his tongue and throat. 

Yukio sighed, “I’m just glad he didn’t lose his appetite. _That_ would be a nightmare,” Rin glared at his brother before turning back to the plate and continuing to shovel the meal into his mouth. 

The room was only filled with the sound of chopsticks clanging against plates and happy moans from the delicious taste of food. The door gently clicked open and closed, drawing their attention. TJ looked absolutely dead tired. She was curled into herself and her eyes were dull. She looked up and noticed them staring. 

Rin watched her go through a series of emotions before she stood up straight, chin held high, like nothing had happened, “So, can I finish? I want to get you walking as soon as I can.” 

Rin exchanged a look with Ryuji before nodding, “Yeah. But, why don’t you sit down and eat with us. You probably missed dinner.” 

TJ blanched, she looked absolutely shell shocked. Her mouth snapped shut and she nodded, sitting in the only open space, which happened to be next to Shura, “Thank you,” She whispered as the red-haired she-demon handed her a plate. TJ ate silently, listening to the conversations around her, not bothering to jump in. 

Shura smiled lazily as the girl finished. The exorcist pushed her half empty plate to the side, silently giving it to TJ. Rin caught a thankful smile shared between the two, before it was gone and they were back to ignoring each other.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For those who are wondering, no, Shura and TJ are not in a relationship. Sorry guys. It's more of a bittersweet friendship (?) if you can even call it that.


	11. AUTHOR'S NOTE! Please read!

I know a lot of you are confused as to why TJ is in here and how or why she is relevant. She’s only in here to help Rin so don’t get your hopes up for the tension between her and Shura being explained. TJ is the main character in my book called Deceiver’s Curse (please do not copy or steal my ideas. Thank you). Because of the plot of this book, I incorporated her in some of my AUs. She is someone who is able to travel to different parallels and realms. Every book, movie, or TV show is a realm. That’s why she’s here. I’m so sorry for the confusion. I will send out an update when I do finish it. But I’ll have to finish my other books first because of how the plot for those tie in. Super sorry, tensions will be explained in Deceiver’s Curse. Sorry again.


	12. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey Everyone! From now on I _promise_ (hopefully) this is just him recovering. Aside from the nightmares and other things of coping with the torture and so forth. But, I am almost done! Depending on the way I end it, I might consider writing an epilogue if you guys like the idea. Maybe even take some ideas for what happens in that. Thank you for all the Kudos and Comments! It means a lot.

Yukio sauntered into the room just as TJ was finishing up. She swung her bag over her shoulder, letting Dakota jump up and perch on her shoulder. Yukio ran straight into her, causing the girl to stumble back into Izumo. The tamer yelped and pushed the girl away to steady herself. After a few moments, TJ had made sure Dakota was settled without fear of falling before continuing to the door. 

TJ turned back to look at them while standing in the threshold. A small smile graced her lips, something about it seemed sad to Yukio, “Should be finished in a few days. I’ll be back when that happens.” Shura nodded, a small smile lifting her features as the white-haired girl closed the door behind her. 

Yukio arched his eyebrow at the red-head before turning back to his brother and handing him a bag, “I went to the store, seeing as how the headphones relaxed you, I bought you some.” 

Rin gaped up at him and tore open the bag. He smiled brightly when he saw the bright blue color, “Funny,” But it held some of the emotions the older twin used to carry all the time until Angel ruined it. Rin’s bright blue eyes held a gleam of mischief when he saw what else the plastic held, “Hehe, chocolate!” 

Shima tentatively reached a hand forward, trying to sneak a small piece. Yukio winced when his brother hissed and smacked the pinkett's hand away, “Mine!” 

Yukio sighed, “You act the exact same, Nii-san. So protective over your chocolate,” Rin shoved a hand full into his mouth and glared in response, daring his twin brother to say anything regarding his treat. 

Bon smiled upon seeing Rin’s usual childish ways and gently ruffled his blue-black hair. Rin purred gently and leaned into the touch. Shiemi walked forward and gently poked at the bandages, “These can probably be removed now, give the wounds some air.” 

Ryuji watched his boyfriend bite his lip before nodding, trusting Shiemi and his brother’s judgement. Yukio gently unraveled the bandages around his legs to starts. His face paled upon seeing the scar at the end of his damaged leg. It was jagged and pale, a stark contrast to his normal skin. Many on the scars along his body were the same, but the one that shocked Yukio was on his bicep. 

Carefully carved into Rin’s flesh was a word that forced bile up his throat. _Murderer_. The others gawked, aside from Bon who just looked pissed, and had likely seen the wound in the ambulance. Yukio crumpled the bandages in his hand, taking deep breaths through his teeth to calm himself. 

“Babe,” Shima muttered, gently laying a hand on Yukio’s shoulder, “Deep breaths. It’s alright, he’s dead.” 

“I’m tempted to resurrect him just to kill him again,” Yukio growled before peeling off the remaining bandage around his brother’s eye. 

Bon looked at Rin’s face sadly. A long scar ran from right above his eyebrow, through his now milky white eye and to his collarbone. Rin was looking around, eyebrows pinched in confusion. Nothing seemed to change for him. The damaged eye wasn’t seeing the room around him. 

Rin’s tail wilted sadly, knowing he’d never see out of that eye ever again. Bon gently hugged him, allowing him to koala onto him and be carried up the stairs to the makeshift lounge room. 

They stayed in the room, all chatting and hoping to boost Rin’s morale. The demon in question had curled into Bon’s lap, purring happily at the familiar noise of the others talking. Etsu was laying next to the two, happy to see Rin away from the misery Angel caused him. 

Kuro seemed to like her too, if the purring and playing with her tail was anything to go by. Etsu looked up at her new master and back at Kuro, wondering how she’d get out of this mess. 

As the sun dipped below the horizon, bathing them in darkness. Rin yawned and curled closer, the others didn’t even bother going to their respective rooms to sleep. The mattress and pillow covered room was extremely comfy. Bon sighed and gently reached for a blanket before pulling it over Rin and laying down to sleep. 

*** 

_Rin awoke to an empty room. Blue eyes scanned the small space, had it really been this small before? Rin shuttered and pulled the blanket around him for warmth, only to find it burning his skin. He howled in pain and flung it to the ground. His skin was too hot, angry red at the familiar touch of Holy Water._

_Rin gulped and stood, the ground was hard and cold against his foot. When had that happened? Rin used the wall to brace himself, hopping forward. The dorm was entirely quiet, enough so that a pin could be heard against the floor from another floor._

_Rin’s eyes darted around him. His hand clenched against the wall, his tail twitching unhappily behind him. Something with an air of danger approached him from behind. Heels clipping harshly against the tiled floor. Rin whipped around, swaying on unbalanced feet, or foot for that matter._

_A flash of blond hair was the only warning as a glint of metal spiralled forward, too fast to see. The metallic bite sunk deep into his chest. He screamed in pain, collapsing to the floor. His flames begged to heal him, but they tore into his skin. Ripping flesh as it fell to the floor in painful globs. Sickly blood pooled from his mouth, sliding it onto the floor beside his hands._

__White fabric drifted against his skin as a pale hand wrenched him up by his hair. Rin cried out, tears streaming down his face in painfully hot waves, “Aw,” The familiar voice cooed, caressing his free hand against Rin’s cheek. His skin burned a trail where the Paladin touched him, “I finally broke the Spawn of Satan. Now, I can enjoy your death!”_ _

__Angel gripped the blade in Rin’s chest, pushing it in dangerously far. Rin howled, trying to kick the danger away, limbs flailing as a burning hand tightened around his throat, pushing him into the wall. Angel grinned, denying him oxygen as Rin slowly started to suffocate, “Aw don’t worry, you won’t die from lack of air.”_ _

__The dagger in his chest was twisted. Rin screamed so loud that his ears popped, hoping someone heard._ _

_Rin shot up from where he had been sleeping on the floor in a cold sweat. Rin’s chest heaved, feeling phantom pains from the dagger. Ragged breaths poured from his mouth. Rin’s shoulders were shaking violently, “Rin?”_

_Rin cried out in surprise and scrambled back. The exwires, Yukio, and Shura were sitting around the room. Each had a worried look plastered across their face. Bon gently pulled the half demon towards him, “It’s alright, it’s just a dream.”_

_Rin curled himself into the crook of Bon’s neck, violent sobs racked his body, threatening to shatter him into a million pieces on the floor._

_***_

_Bon had woken up too early in his mind. He grumbled angrily, spewing curses about how he’d kill Shima if he had anything to do with it. His murderous thoughts were soon put aside when he heard the pained crying and harsh breaths coming from Rin._

_Bon was quick to wake Yukio, the others followed soon after. Bon was trying to shake the older twin awake, “Rin! Wake up, common!”_

_To Bon’s bafflement, it got worse. How? The screams, Rin was howling in pain, clawing at his chest. Yukio jumped forward, “It must be an after affect of the Red Liquor! Wake him up, now!”_

_Bon didn’t need to be told twice. He was shaking Rin, trying to wake him. Etsu was pawing at her master, trying to nuzzle him awake. Yukio whipped around and pointed to Shiemi, “Do you have any herbs that will wake him?”_

_Shiemi shook her head sadly. Bon had begun to freak out, Rin wasn’t waking up. An ear piercing scream tore from his throat. The entire group yelped, curling forward, hands clamped over their ears to muffle the noise._

_Bon and Yukio were the only ones not to move, though they winced from the noise. Rin shot up, his head colliding with Bon’s. The dragoon in training yelped, but Rin didn’t notice. His body was quaking, breaths coming in harsh pants._

_“Rin?” Bon gently crawled forward, trying to get in the half-demon’s line of sight. Rin cried out and scrambled back, scanning the room. A cloudy mist covered his only seeing eye, still seeing what he had in the dream._

_A few moments passed, and he blinked. Bon gently pulled him forward, hugging him tightly. The blue-black haired boy sobbed into his shoulder, “It’s alright. It was just a dream,” Their friends gently settled back down, worry plastered across their faces._

_They’d never seen Rin this broken. Not even bothering to put up his usual happy, go-lucky mask. Bon was actually glad he wasn’t trying to. He needed to get it out of his system, Bon knew from experience. Not on the specific matter, but just being so scared. And how his mother would sing to him when he couldn’t sleep, or was crying._

_Bon hadn’t realized when he’d started humming, but when he noticed, he didn’t stop. He wasn’t going to try singing like his mother, he always ended up sounding like a dying cat raking it’s claws across the chalkboard. Rin’s sobbing had been reduced to sniffles at the soft voice._

_Yukio, Shiemi, and Shura looked absolutely dumbfounded by the soft voice Bon had. Izumo, as per usual, didn’t let her emotions show. Koneko and Shima were smiling brightly, remembering how Bon would hum all the time when they were little. Sometimes they’d even catch him singing when he thought he was alone._

_Neither friend had heard him sing in awhile. Whether it be from the lack of privacy or too busy studying and with Cram School, they didn’t know. Shima smiled brightly and leaned against Yukio, pulling his hand into the pinkett’s lap and rubbing soothing circles across the exorcist’s knuckles._

_They murmured quietly to each other. Shima wanted Yukio to calm down and to show him that Rin would be fine. That they were there from him. Yukio nodded, smiling weakly. He couldn’t get that scream out of his head. It was bouncing around, echoing into his ears. He never wanted _his_ Nii-san to go through that again. _

_Rin had fallen back asleep, still curled against Bon. The older boy didn’t seem to mind as he gently played with the demon boy’s hair. Shura yawned, “Welp, I’m going back to sleep. You guys should too,” The she-demon bounded out the door to her respective room._

_Yukio sighed and got up, dragging Shima with him to the twin’s dorm room. Bon followed, careful not to disturb the demon currently Koala-ing on him. It took some persuasion from a practically unconscious Rin to let go of him._

_Bon smiled and gently pulled the covers over his boyfriend before silently walking back to the door so he could crash in the room Koneko and Shima were sharing with him. The latter who was currently curled up on the younger Okumura’s bed. The twin in question turned over sightly, “Suguro,” Bon jumped at the unexpected voice, “You can stay with him,” His teacher turned back over and promptly fell asleep._

_The monk nodded and slipped off his shoes. Leaving him in only the sweat pants and t-shirt he’d worn that day. Rin was still wearing the sweatshirt he’d lent him, Bon was never going to get that back. Bon chuckled at the thought and pulled Rin closer, enjoying the warmth the demon boy provided._

_The soft sighs from Rin was enough to lull the worried monk to sleep._

_***_

_Rin was forever grateful that the nightmares had been chased away from his head. And he had no doubt it had something to do with being curled into the crook of Bon’s neck while he slept. Rin smiled lazily and curled closer, if that was even possible._

_He felt more so than he heard when Bon chuckled. “Good morning, Sleepy head.”_

_Rin whined in protest when someone, probably his brother, pulled open the curtains to the window. Bright light spilled into the room, “Don’ wanna!” Rin grumbled when Bon started to sit up, clinging to the monk to try and stay asleep._

_Rin heard Shima cackle from across the room and peaked out of Bon’s shoulder just slightly so he could glare at him before hiding again. Yukio sighed in exasperation, “Nii-san, you need to take a bath, or shower. You smell.”_

_Rin scrunched his nose in protest, but was reminded of how dirty he _felt_ as well. The demon boy sighed and nodded, “Okay. I do feel dirty, anyway.” _

_Yukio smiled kindly and nodded to Bon, who carried the demon to the bathroom. The rooster-haired monk placed Rin on the side of the tub, “Do you want me to leave?”_

_Rin shook his head fast enough to worry Bon about it flying off, “Please, I don’t want to be alone.”_

_Bon smiled gently and nodded, “If you don’t mind, I need to wash up too,” Rin’s face flushed brightly, Bon couldn’t help but think it was cute, “That alright with you?”_

_Rin nodded vigorously and allowed Bon to help him climb out of his clothes. While warm, if not a little hot, water filled up the tub, Bon gently lowered Rin into the water. The blue eyed boy sighed contently, looking over at Bon as he stripped._

_Bon skin was lightly tanned. Toned muscles covering his figure, a stark contrast to Rin’s now lithe and skinny figure. Rin’s one blue and one milky blue eye racked across Bon’s body. Rin’s face flushed deeper than before and he looked away quickly when Ryuji caught him staring._

_A playful smirk spread across the exwire’s face. Amber eyes twinkling mischievously, “Like what you see?”_

_Rin nodded, blush deepening if that was even possible. Bon smiled sweetly and stepped into the bath, pulled Rin between his legs. Rin’s back was pressed flush to his boyfriend’s chest._

_Rin sighed contently and leaned his head back, resting it against Ryuji’s shoulder, “Mm, feels good,” Bon pressed a gentle kiss to his head and reached for the Shampoo bottle, “I will never overlook a shower again.”_

_Bon belted out laughing, gently lifting the demon boy’s head so he could massage the soap into his blue-black hair, “You feeling okay?”_

_Rin hummed in question, soft purrs vibrating from his body at the soft hands running through his hair._

_“Well,” Bon continued, “I wanted to make sure you didn’t have another nightmare. Or if anything hurts and if we need to check anything.”_

_Rin smiled softly, eyes closed, “I’m alright. So far no more nightmares. And the only recent pain is from last night when I woke up.”_

_He could almost feel Bon nodding, “That’s good. I don’t want you to be in pain ever again.”_

_Rin turned slightly, watching the way worry etched itself into Bon’s features. His eyebrows were scrunched together worriedly. His lips tilted downwards in concern, “Bon, you know that’s impossible. Whether it be from a paper cut,” Rin gently pressed his finger to the crease between Bon’s eyebrows until they relaxed, “Or being an exorcist when we do finally get there. We can’t stop _all_ the pain.” _

_“I wish we could. I don’t want you to feel like that ever again,” Bon leaned forward and gently kissed the tip of Rin’s nose._

_The half-demon giggled and splashed him playfully, “I’m just lucky to have you.”_

_***_

_Half an hour later, the two had finished bathing. Rin was just glad to feel clean. His body was no longer caked in blood and dried sweat. And he didn’t smell. It still baffled him how the others had managed to deal with him when he clearly smelled horrible. Shima claimed they were just glad he was back and didn’t care._

_Etsu, on the other hand, said she’d stolen a summoning paper and summoned a friend of hers while everyone was asleep at the hospital. It was a demon she refused to out, but they used a spell to hide his smell until he bathed. He had been about to thank her until she said it was unbearable._

_Bon continued to mess with Rin’s hair. Which was back to it’s messy and silky self. Rin pouted for the upteinth time when Bon running his hands through his hair. He wouldn’t admit it, but it felt really good. Rin curled into his boyfriend’s lap, his body betraying just how much he like the feeling of Ryuji’s hand carding through his hair when purrs vibrated from his chest._

_Everyone was doing their own thing while Ukobach prepared Sukiyaki in the kitchen. Yukio was working on classwork (shocker) while Shima complained about not paying attention to him. Izumo and Shiemi were talking, it was more one sided with Izumo looking out the window. Koneko was scolding Shima into leaving Yukio alone, but was smiling at how they were teasing each other._

_Bon was reading a book. He’d tried studying, but Rin kept flicking his tail in front of the words in protest. Bon grumbled when the black tuft flicked in front of his face again, “Really? I need to study.”_

_Rin looked up. Jutting out his lower lip and giving him the best puppy dog eyes he could. Yukio chuckled, “Better look away. No one can resist those.”_

_Bon looked back to his book, trying to avoid the gaze. He could feel the heavy weight of Rin’s eyes on him. A few minutes later, Ryuji sighed and closed the book, “Alright, alright.” Rin’s tail wages happily, his arms wrapping around Bon’s neck so he can look at him. He was smiling brightly, the way he would before…_

_Ryuji’s thoughts were interrupted when an empty tin can slapped against the side of his face. He turned his head to glare at the drunk Shura, “If you guys get…hehe…dirty. I’m kickin ya ou’.”_

_Bon rolled his eyes and gently kissed Rin on the nose, “We should probably listen to the angry drunk over there,” He ignored the squawk from Shura at the name and watched Rin for his reaction._

_Rin pouted cutely but nodded anyway._


	13. Chapter 12

Rin never really thought much of it when Gayle warned him he’d likely get phantom pains, and they could be anything from tingling to blinding pain. Oh, how Rin wished he’d paid attention, because this hurt like _Hell!_

It had started at the most random point in time. They’d all been in the middle of dessert, which was Rin’s favorite (ice cream), when the pain had began. It had only been a dull throb, nothing to worry himself about, except that it was in a part of his leg that _wasn’t there!_

The most he reacted to it was his face screwing up. It was kind of uncomfortable, but he kept it to himself, happily listening to the conversations going on around the table. Shura was giggling, a drunken blush across her face. No surprise there. Koneko, Shima and Izumo were having a debate about something Rin really didn’t want to know. 

Shiemi and Yukio were talking about the new test. Bon sometimes jumped in, hoping to know what he should study. Rin had been sitting there, happy to lean against Bon and just listen to the familiar voices of his friends. 

That’s when the pain started to seep further down his leg, like it had turned invisible and not been cut off entirely. Rin whimpered as his muscles constricted painfully. Izumo and Bon were the only ones to notice, sitting next to the half-demon during dinner. 

“Rin? What is it?” Bon gently pulled the demon away to look at his face, which was slowly beginning to turn red from trying not to cry from the pulses shooting down the nonexistent appendage. 

Rin yelped when it felt like his leg was on _fire_. Invisible daggers slamming into invisible flesh. Rin gripped at Bon’s arm, face twisting in agony, “I-it hu-hurts,” RIn pressed his head to Bon’s chest, trying to hide from the pain. 

Bon looked to Yukio frantically before turning back to Rin, “Where?” 

“Leg,” Was all Rin could force out. 

Yukio sighed, wanted so badly to jump up, but crowding Rin wouldn’t help. He looked at Bon, “It’s a phantom pain, we’ve just got to wait it out.” 

Bon gently hugged Rin, reaching down to his stump of a leg. Bon bit his lip, he didn’t know if this would work, but it was worth a try, “If this hurts more, tell me to stop,” Rin nodded frantically, just wanting the pain to stop. 

Ryuji carefully rubbed circles on Rin’s leg. Moving to another spot after a few seconds each time. Rin slowly released a breath he hadn’t realised he’d been holding, slowly relaxing. Bon’s gentle hands massaging his leg helped a lot, “Thanks,” Rin whispered after a few minutes. 

The others had been kind enough to not crowd around or shoot questions at him. They were glancing at him worriedly, but didn’t say anything. Rin silently crawled to sit in Bon’s lap, looking at Yukio to assure his twin he was fine. Yukio smiled before turning to Shima and starting a conversation. 

Rin curled his tail around Ryuji’s wrist as he twined their hands together. Etsu jumped up in the open spot Rin left. Something hit Ryuji, something he’d been meaning to ask, “Hey, Rin?” 

The half-demon hummed in question. Turning his head slightly. 

Ryuji smiled at the way his head cocked to the side like a curious puppy, “In the hospital. You called Etsu “Mom”, Why?” 

The others somehow managed to hear his question and stopped to listen. Rin made a silent ‘O’ with his mouth and looked down at his hand. Konekomaru was quick to add on, “You don’t have to answer if you aren’t ready.” Bon nodded in agreement. 

Rin shook his head, “It’s fine,” He glanced over at Etsu. She was resting her head on her paws, which were perched on the table. She seemed to be thinking, watching Rin carefully with her violet eyes, “She took care of me. Ang-” 

Rin was cut off by Etsu growling at that Bastard’s name. Rin smirked lightly, “ _He_ would leave daggers in my skin, sometimes bullets. Etsu would come in after he left and take them out and try to wash away any… any blood. She was able to get me some water, too. She mostly stayed by me, talking me through everything so I wouldn’t panic any worse than I already was. I just kinda started calling her that after a while.” 

Bon chuckled, “Sounds like you were lucky to find her.” 

Rin nodded frantically, not wanting to think about how everything would have changed if Etsu hadn’t been there. The Byakko smiled and licked Rin’s free hand. 

The half-demon caught Izumo glaring at Etsu. Rin’s eyebrows furrowed, “What is it?” 

The red eyed girl didn’t skip a beat in answering the question, “Why did she attack Mike and Uke when we first met her?” 

Rin blanched before turning to the black furred demon and arching an eyebrow. Etsu smirked and shrugged, _**They were being rude and I wasn’t in the mood to deal with their teenager angst at that moment.**_

Rin barked out laughing, taking a few moments to compose himself. Shima rested his head in his hand, “Care to enlighten us as to what is so funny?” 

Rin’s shoulders shook, trying to stop himself from laughing, “She said, and I quote, ‘They were being rude and I wasn’t in the mood to deal with their teenager angst at that moment.’” Rin continued to laugh at the looks of astonishments on their faces. 

Etsu turned to him, a scary gleam in her eyes, _**These fuckers have no sense of humor. They probably wouldn’t know it if it bit them in the ass**_

Rin howled in laughter. The looks of confusion from the others only served to fuel it further. Bon leaned to the side so he could look Rin in the eyes, “What the Hell did she say?” 

“‘These fuckers have no sense of humor. They probably wouldn’t know it if it bit them in the ass,’” Rin forced out between laughs. 

There was a series of undignified squawks from the room as the exwires and two exorcists processed what Etsu had said about them. Shura pointed an accusing finger at Etsu before slurring, “I really-hic-like her.” 

Rin’s laughter died down to giggles after a while. Kuro had joined him in laughing having already taken a liking to the violet eyed demon. Rin caught Bon smiling fondly at him, happy to see Rin enjoying himself. 

Rin turned to the rooster haired monk and pulled at the sweatshirt he was wearing. When Bon had thrown the one Rin had been wearing earlier into the wash, he’d practically forced him to put on one of his spares so he could steal it later. And now that it was later… 

Ryuji arched an eyebrow when Rin scrunched his nose at the lack of the monk understanding his silent request, “Sweatshirt.” 

Bon snorted before pulling off the fabric and handing it over to Rin. The sweatshirt was baggy on the demon, but fuzzy and he could curl himself into it. Not to mention it smelled like Ryuji, “I’m never getting that back, am I?” The monk joked playfully. 

“Nope!” Rin smiled brightly and pulled the hood over his messy hair before curling himself in the crook of Ryuji’s neck. 

Bon smiled and hugged Rin tightly. Shiemi giggled, watching the interaction between the too, “You two are adorable,” She gushed, green eyes sparkling. 

Shima turned to Yukio, pouting at the brunette, “Why can’t we be like that?” 

“Because you’re a peasant,” Yukio deadpanned. Enjoying the look of utter betrayal on his boyfriend’s face. Shima huffed and crossed his arms, turning away from their teacher dramatically. 

Yukio wrapped his arm around Shima’s shoulders playfully, “But, I still love you,” Rin watched his brother’s teal eyes shimmer as Shima turned back to him. 

“Love you, too,” Shima grinned and leaned his head against Yukio’s shoulder. 

Konekomaru and Izumo gagged dramatically, “Disgusting,” Shura cackled and did something similar. Using her tongue and fist to make a gesture using her mouth. Rin blushed bright red, and from the looks of it, his brother was too. 

Shiemi watched, taking a few extra moments to understand exactly what Shura had implied. Shiemi’s face turned bright red, clashing horribly with her purple amethyst hair, “Shura!” The young girl scolded, looking extremely embarrassed and uncomfortable. 

Rin chuckled at her childish-ness, knowing she’d want a subject change or try to forget about that. Rin turned to look at Shura, “When will TJ come back? I want to walk again!” Rin whined, bending back to look at Shura upside down. 

Shura mulled this over for a small amount of time, “She said a few days when she came yesterday. Maybe tomorrow? I don’t know how fast she works. Hopefully by the end of the week,” Rin thought this over. There were four days left in the week. He’d missed a lot. Yukio was going to have his ass if he failed this school term because of- 

“Holy shit! Does that mean i have to go back to school?!” Rin shouted, startling Bon with his outburst. 

Yukio chuckled, “Didn’t think you’d be worried about _that_.” 

“I’m not,” Rin crossed his arms defiantly, “I’m just scared that you’ll kill me if I fail this term.” 

Yukio looked mildly surprised, “Didn’t realize you actually heard the threats I’ve said in class when I catch you slacking off.” 

Rin scoffed, smiling slightly, “My favorite so far is ‘Rin I swear to God. If you don’t listen I’m going to invert your ribcage with a scalpel.’” Rin smirked smugly at the surprise written across the faces around the table. 

Yukio huffed, “You hid my guns and there was a demon attack at school the next day.” 

Rin shrugged, “Still. Your threats are pretty creative.” 

“Oh, I’ve got to hear these,” Shima leaned forward, eager to get some blackmail on his boyfriend. 

“Rin, if you tell him, I _will_...” Yukio cut himself off, realising just how bad that idea was for the waiting ears. 

“You’re going to what, little brother?” Rin smirked deviously, “Pour cement in my ears? Didn’t you threaten that when we were 12?” 

Yukio groaned and slammed his head against the table, “I hate you.” 

“Mmhmm, I’m sure you do.” 

Yukio sat back up, a devilish grin stretched across his face, “Actually, I seem to remember one thing _Rin_ happened to say to Izumi when he wouldn’t stop flirting with people. Do you remember it?” Yukio asked, false innocence coating his words like honey. 

Rin paled considerably, he knew _exactly_ what his brother was talking about, “Yukio,” Rin warned. 

The half-demon tried to crawl away from the table but Bon held him tighter, “I wanna hear this,” Rin groaned as Yukio opened his mouth again. 

“I seem to remember you having enough of Izumi flirting, especially because he’s a monk. Oh, what were your exact words? Weren’t they-” 

“Kio, I’m warning you.” 

Yukio continued like he’d never stopped, “Didn’t you say, ‘Izumi, I swear to God. If you don’t stop flirting with every girl you see, I will castrate you with jumper cables.’” 

Rin groaned and tried sliding under the table. His face was burning with embarrassment as the entire table howled in laughter. Bon was laughing madly, doubling over to rest his head on Rin’s shoulder. Rin grumbled, “I hate you all.” 

*** 

Rin had hoped that by the next day, everyone would forget what Yukio told them and go back to normal. Yeah, that was apparently way too much to ask in the Fate’s opinion. They’d been taunting him all day, and it didn’t get any better when TJ walked in with. Maybe it even got worse. 

Tj had stepped into the door, a bag looking a lot like a leg slung over her back, when Shima had thought it would be a good idea to shout, “Hey, need any jumper cables?!” 

TJ had froze, seeing the way the others were smiling like idiots while Rin was seething in annoyance. TJ seemed to take a moment to realise Shima had directed the question at her. She shrugged before saying, “Sure, I have someone I want to shock to death anyway,” Rin smirked, he wasn’t sure if she was joking or not, but it sure scared Shima out of his wits. 

Rin watched the scarred girl carefully lay both of her bags on the table. Removing the cloth that looked strangely like a mattress sheet. Rin’s eyes widened when he saw it. The outline was exactly like his leg before the accident. 

The dark metal seemed to shift and move. When Rin reached out, he found the metal to be warm, the normal heat of a body. Yukio gaped and turned to TJ, “What type of metal is that?” 

TJ smiled gently, “It’s called _Kas’tileden Maruton_. Better known as Infinity Metal for the way people claim to see galaxies and stars in it. It’s extremely rare, and very valuable. Don’t lose it.” 

Rin nodded dazedly, watched a deep blue swirl through a plate under his hand. Ryuji smiled at the look on Rin’s face, “Could you explain? It’s obviously different.” 

TJ nodded, “Of course. Not much is known out this metal, even from where it’s from. But, one reason that it’s so valuable is because of how it can grow,” Seeing the confused looks, she continued, “When _Kas’tileden Maruton_ is used in certain ways, it can grow on its own. When used for missing limbs, it will grow to look like your other leg. When you build up your muscles, it will act like a normal limb. As well as moving and staying the same temperature as your body at any given moment.” 

TJ watched Rin nod. He was thankful that it would do that so he didn’t have one thinner than the other. TJ continued, “It also has another nickname, though it’s not used by most. Opal stone, mainly because of the way the colors can change. If you choose, the colors will change, but only if you use a code on this inside panel,” TJ lifted a small panel on the side of the calf to reveal nerve wires and a control panel. 

There was no number keypad, but a black rectangle, “Watch me exactly,” She instructed as she drug her finger in a lightning-like pattern with a curve at the end. The shin and side of the calf opened up to reveal a compartment, big enough to hold a few small things, with straps to hold items in place, “You can store somethings it here. The straps will keep you from sounding like a jingle bell at Christmas. There’s a switch and scanner, it’s about the size of your thumb, that will allow the metal to take on the exact color of your skin. Scan and flip the switch and you won’t see the difference.” 

Rin didn’t seem to care much about the camoflauge, just walking. Yukio seemed to be the one taking charge in asking questions, “What happens if it breaks?” 

“It can’t,” TJ stays simply, “The only thing that can break or bend it is a special type of energy called Lunar Power. It’s practically magic. And seeing as no one on this planet believes in that magic, I’m going to say you’ll be fine.” 

“Can I put it one now?” Rin whined, flopped sideways on the table and jutting his lower lip out in a pout. 

TJ chuckled and closed the panel backup, “Sure. Word of warning, when I do attach it, it’s going to feel like you’re being electrocuted. But only for a split second!” She added the last part upon seeing the horror on Rin’s face, “This thing is run by electricity. I’m literally jump starting the nerves in your leg.” 

Ryuji rubs Rin’s back soothingly as TJ gives the half-demon a minute to breath. Rin nodded shakily, “I’ll be able to walk right?” 

“Yes,” TJ bit her lip to stop herself from saying something else. 

Rin nodded, “Alright.” 

TJ nodded and pulled a medal disk the size of her palm. Rin looked at it skeptically, “This won’t hurt. Might feel cold and a bit weird. The actual leg part will though.” She tapped the metal disk to the end of his leg. Rin watched the metal spiral out and cling an inch to the end. TJ points to the dark metal that seemed to sink into his skin before it _was_ his skin, “This _does not_ come off, ever. It’s fused with your skin and will act as such.” 

Rin gulped as TJ grabbed his new leg and braced herself against the table. Rin grabbed Bon’s hand tightly, his other curled around the edge of the table. Rin glared at the leg, thinking that would lessen the pain. The half-demon nodded when TJ looked up for confirmation. 

Giving no warning, TJ aligned the two edges together and ran her finger over the edge, muttering something under her breath. A blue glow followed her finger, thinking it was a trick of the light, no one paid any mind. 

Rin yelped when lightning pain shot up his leg and the entire left side of his body. His hand tightened around the table and Ryuji’s hand. The snap of bones in Bon’s hand worried the other exwires, but when the monk didn’t pull away, they didn’t say anything about it, at least not yet. 

TJ backed away to show she was finished. Yukio rubbed his twin’s back soothingly, allowing him to catch his breath, “I-I’m okay,” Rin really wasn’t. The pain had brought him back to that room. Whips cracking against his skin and daggers sliding, burning his skin and boiling his blood. 

He gently retracted his hand from Bon’s. He’d heard the distinct snap of bones, and was pretty sure it’s wasn’t the lights. He looked down at Rin’s already purple hand and whimpered, pulling it gingerly closer so he could look at it. Ryuji hissed but otherwise didn’t say anything, “I’m sorry.” 

“‘S okay,” Bon said truthfully, cupping Rin’s face with his non-injured hand, “Nothing Yukio can’t fix.” 

Yukio nodded and pulled Bon a little farther down the table to fix his hand. Rin whined pitifully. His head snapped up when TJ stepped forward, “Diagnostic check,” She clarified when Rin’s eyebrows pinched together. 

He nodded and watched her bend every joint in the correct ways before checking the compartment in his shin and calf. TJ nodded, “Alright, try bending your knee on your own. Good, flex your feet, point. Wave with your foot,” Rin paused following her directions at that. 

“What?” 

“You heard me. Wave with your foot,” Rin did as she instructed, feeling like a complete fool. Shima cackled from where he stood, earning a glare from both of the teens, “Can you stand? You’ll need to learn how to walk with your friends. But, I need to make sure this can hold your weight.” 

Rin hoped to his feet shakily. Shura hovered nearby, ready to catch him. Rin wobbled and whimpered when his muscles seized from the lack of being used. Shura reached out to catch him but was slapped away. If he couldn’t stand on his own, he wouldn’t be able to walk. 

Shura pulled away, but continued to hover close by. If Rin hadn’t been so focused, he would have noticed the way Bon smiled at seeming him on his feet again. Yukio had finished patching him up, and was watching along with the others. 

Shiemi squealed and launched herself forward and hugged Rin. He began to fall backward with the added weight of Shiemi, but Bon was quick to push him back up. Rin looked backward and smiled. Ryuji gently pecked him on the nose before looking back at TJ. 

TJ nodded, “Alright, I guess I’ll be going,” The girl with white hair collected her things and started to the door. 

“Hey,” Shura shouted to her. TJ froze and turned around. Shura hugged her awkwardly, “Thank you.” 

TJ’s eyes widened comically before she hugged the exorcist back, “No problem. Just helping out a friend,” Shura whispered something too quiet for the others to hear, but TJ smiled, pulling away after a moment. The strange girl waved over her shoulder before disappearing through the door and into the bright sun of the afternoon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aaand, TJ is gone. Won't see her again in this fic, you're welcome! And, I'm almost done! I actually thought this would take longer to write, like, a LOT longer! But, then I can work on some more fics, cause I have a ton! maybe get all my one shots done first. And I'm so thankful for all the love! 1794 reads and counting, holy schist!


	14. Chapter 13

“Why does walking hurt so much? I don’t remember it being this hard!” Rin complained again when he stumbled on another step. The second TJ had left, they’d started helping him walk again. He felt foolish for not being able to do something most people have been able to do since they were a toddler. 

“Rin, the more you exercise your legs, the faster you’ll be walking on your own,” Bon quipped. The rooster haired monk was walking backwards slowly, gripping Rin’s forearms and vise versa. 

Rin stuck his tongue out at him before looking back at his feet. It was still strange to him. He could feel the cold tile beneath _both_ of his feet. Rin hadn’t bothered to change the color coding and left it looking like the metal. It was entrancing the way dark, almost invisible, colors would swirl around in the _Kas’tileden Maruton_ panels. 

Rin heard Shima sniggering and paused to look at him. He was faced with a camera, Konekomaru chuckling lightly, and Shura rolling to the floor crying of laughter, “What’s so funny?” Rin arched an eyebrow, turning to Bon, who just shrugged his shoulders in confusion. 

“N-nothing!” Shima doubled over laughing. Yukio looked mildly concerned for the health of the three of them. 

Shura howled from the floor, “He said it was cute that we got to see your new ‘First Steps.’” 

Rin scowled and flipped off the camera before continuing to walk. Yukio hummed as he stumbled on shaky feet again. The younger Okumura brightened after a moment and bolted up the stairs, much to the confusion of everyone else. 

_**What the Hell is that dummy doing?**_

“I have no idea,” Rin cocked his head to the side as his brother came back and jogged to the end of the hall. 

Yukio turned on his heel, and evil glint in his eyes that his brother didn’t like. Rin could see him hiding something behind his back, but was drawn away from it when Yukio said, “Suguro, step away. We’re going to let Rin walk on his own.” 

Rin squawked, looking between the two in front of him. Bon leaned down and pressed a quick kiss to his lips before moving to stand next to Shima. 

Now that his twin wasn’t partially blocked out from Bon, the evil glint seemed scarier. Rin gulped and watched Yukio bring Rin’s large bag of chocolate out from behind his back, “Get to me and you get chocolate.” 

Rin crossed his arms and cocked his hip to the side, having mastered standing a few minutes after the leg being attached, “Give it back, Kio. remember last time you messed with my chocolate?” 

“Yup!” Yukio smiled with false innocence, “I seem to remember it being the same week you threatened Izumi with the-” 

“Don’t,” Rin growled. 

“I could tell them what that threat was,” Yukio knew he’d just cornered his brother, and getting him angry would be a good way to motivate him. 

Rin groaned out a, “No.” The same moment everyone else shouted, “Yes!” 

“I got two in the span of 10 minutes. You told me you would cut out my tongue, use it to cut off my arm and beat me to death with my arm. The next was my favorite. You said you would chloroform me while I was sleeping and hang me by my foot in a tree with a string linked to my eyelids so when I opened them, it would break the slip knot and drop me in half-mile radius of acid covered bear traps.” 

Rin did not appreciate Yukio for telling them that. He’d been having a bad week and had gone through every way to creatively kill anyone who got on his nerves. He regretted everything now that they weren’t scared from them and just laughed about them. Rin has to admit they were funny, but he didn’t like be laughed at! 

Rin’s face was flushing red as he watched the other howl in laughter. Ryuji was leaning against Shima, shaking from their laughter. Shura has taken up permanent residence on the floor. Izumo was smiling slightly, continuing to keep most of her stoic face. Shiemi looked mildly disturbed but smiling all the same. 

Rin turned his glare on his brother. Rin took a shaky step forward, determined to punch his brother or maybe follow through on one of those threats. When the half-demon found his balance, he smirked evilly at his brother who looked like he was ready to run. Rin launched himself forward and tackled Yukio to the ground, grabbing his bag of candy and swatting him a little hard then necessary on the side of the head. 

Yukio cackled loudly, “Knew it would work,” Rin scowled and marched to the living room door, “What, no threats?” 

Rin stalled, maybe he would threaten him. He did have a good one on his tongue. He remembered how Shiro Fujimoto had laughed at how childish he’d been acting that week. But, he couldn't blame the son of Satan. It had been the first week of his first month-long suspension after a particularly bad fight. And he’d been taking his anger out on anyone that got on his nerves even slightly. 

Rin turned his head slightly, “Shut up or I’ll use your intestines as a skipping rope,” The half-demon walked up to the pillow covered room and flopping on his stomach, relishing in the way he could feel his new leg. 

Rin’s knees were bent, legs waving around in the air as he popped candy into his mouth. Bon sauntered in and plopped down next to him, resting his head on Rin’s back, “No more threats.” 

“Did I scare you?” Rin smirked, swiveling his head to look at Bon. 

Ryuji’s head shook ever so slightly, “Shiemi,” Rin paled and turned back to the door, “Don’t worry. Yukio assured her you were joking.” 

Rin nodded thankfully and held out his hand and dropped some chocolate into Bon’s waiting palm, “So, where are the others?” 

“Now that you’re back and everything is almost to normal, they decided to do their own thing. Shima practically dragged Yukio out the door to the town. I think they’re going to watch a movie. Koneko said he wanted to go to the library. Shura, likely a bar-” 

Rin cracked up at that, his tail playfully flicking Bon in the face. The monk gasped dramatically, causing Rin to dissolve into a fit of giggles. The monk gently ran his fingers through the fur of Rin’s tail, sending shivers down the demon’s back. 

Bon hummed and spoke up again, “The girls went to go shopping, so, we can do whatever you want. I know you haven’t liked being cooped up in the dorms, so we could walk around. Go to the park or something.” 

Rin sighed and set the chocolates aside, “That sounds nice. Let me get changed though, it’s kind of hot outside.” 

“Understatement of the century,” Rin climbed to his feet and sauntered across the hall to the room he shared with Yukio. The half-demon carefully folded Bon’s sweatshirt and placed it on his bed. It was way too hot to be wearing it outside anyway. 

With lightning speed, Rin was back in simple shorts and a t-shirt. He found Bon leaning against the wall in the hallway, having changed as well. Rin smiled and twined their hands together before leaving the dorm. 

The fresh air was welcome to the half-demon as he skipped ahead, stopping a few feet in front of Bon when he noticed he’d been trailing behind, only to do it again. The rooster-haired monk was laughing, enjoying seeing Rin so happy and how he used to act. 

Rin elected to go to the park, wanting to stay outside in the hot air and fresh breeze. Rin happily spread out on his back, listening to the bright green grass rustle and sway. He hummed happily, closing his eyes and listening to the relaxing sounds around him. Bon flopped down next to him and stared up at the sky. 

Neither boy said a word, comfortable with each other’s silent company. Rin shifted closer and sighed, “I missed this.” 

Bon hummed in question, allowing Rin the time to answer, “The fresh air. The breeze, the sun against my skin. Listening to the sounds, it’s all just so… peaceful.” 

Bon smiled and shifted his hand out from behind his head and brushed his hand against Rin’s. The bright-eyed boy smiled and twined their fingers together loosely. Maybe everything would be alright, a little rocky in places, but alright.


	15. Chapter 14

Now that the other exwires found it easier to stay at the Okumura’s dorm from how often they would stay there anyway, Mephisto gave them permission to make it the “Cram School Dorms.” 

One of the funniest parts was how Etsu wasn’t taking anyone’s shit when they told her she had to stay at the dorms. It later became helpful, she was able to knock him out of flashbacks and panic attacks when he had them. The teachers just turned a blind eye to her. 

The first day back, Rin had been extremely nervous. Fidgeting with the hem of his shirt. Bon bumped his shoulder, “Nervous?” 

Rin opened his mouth to answer but was interrupted when Shima draped himself on his shoulders, “Course he is! He’s been gone for almost two weeks! The teachers’ll be pissed!” 

Bon glared at his pink haired friend and growled out, “Not helping.” 

“But it’s the truth!” Rin stepped forward to stand next to Izumo. Over the last few days, he’d grown closer to her, and she was actually really cool, “Bon’s going to wring his neck,” Rin sighed, letting Izumo use him as an armrest. 

“That a 20?” 

“Yup. You?” 

“$50 says someone’s going to get punched,” She sighed, watching the two monk’s antics. 

Konekomaru walked up next to Rin, “Are you betting on them?” 

“Yup,” Izumo and Rin said in unison. Rin adds on, “Bon’s been a little tense for a while. I think he needs to punch something, preferably a punching bag.” 

“Do you know why?” Yukio asked, resting his head on his brother’s shoulder. 

“He’s still really pissed at Angel. My nightmares can get really bad, same with the panic attacks. Ryuji’s just worried and hates seeing me upset.” 

Konekomaru nodded, confirming what he’d said, “We were all at each other’s throats when you were kidnapped. It took a toll on us. I was talking to Bon earlier, he still has a _lot_ of pent up anger.” 

Rin smiled at the bald monk and nodded to his brother. Both Okumura’s walked forward and pulled their boyfriends back by the collar of their jacket. Bon squawked in surprise but allowed the son of Satan to drag him out of earshot. 

Pulling them around the corner, Rin came to a stop and whipped around to arch his scar-side eyebrow at him. Bon looked down at his feet, feeling bad about yelling at Shima. He’d just been so angry these past two weeks. And he’d pent it up, not letting it out. 

“I’m sorry,” He whispered sheepishly, “I shouldn’t have let out my anger on Shima. It’s just that…” Everything was crashing down, he’d tried so hard to hide everything. How scared he was about Rin, how worried he had been (and still was). 

Rin gently reached up and cupped Ryuji’s face in both of his hands. His thumb ran against the soft skin of Bon’s face, “Ryuji, look at me. I’m okay. I’m here.” 

Small tears drifted down the older’s cheeks. He rested his forehead against Rin’s own, “I’m sorry.” 

Rin shook his head slightly, “Don’t be. You have every right to be angry, just don’t take it out on the others. We’re all going through this, together,” Rin smiled and leaned up to kiss the slightly taller teen. 

Ryuji smiled and pulled Rin flush against his body, deepening the kiss. The half-demon snaked his arms behind the older’s head and dug lean fingers into bi-colored hair. Rin could clearly hear Etsu fake gagging from where she sat by the wall. Rin chose to ignore it. However, he couldn’t ignore the throat clearing from the same direction. 

Rin looked up to see Yukio, Shima, and Izumo standing there awkwardly, “We were going to tell you the others wanted to go to class and you should probably join them,” Yukio coughed out. Rin rolled his eyes, Yukio acted like he hasn’t been caught with Shima in similar situations. 

The half-demon waved them away and gently kissed Ryuji again before separating and following Yukio to where the others stood, waiting. Izumo smirked and said in a low voice, “Etsu wanted to bring us over, said she didn’t want to suffer alone.” 

Rin gaped and turned to glare at the demon fox, “Traitor,” Etsu shrugged before bounding forward innocently. Rin sucked on his teeth and arched an eyebrow, “You’re going to regret that later.” 

Bon chuckled and wrapped an arm around Rin’s shoulders, “I really wish I could hear what she says. It’s kinda hard guessing when you can be vague,” Rin stuck his tongue out, causing Bon to smirk, “Put your tongue back where it belongs.” 

“Your mouth,” The blue eyed boy deadpanned and skipped over to the others, leaving a very flustered Ryuji to gap like a fish. 

Shima arched a brow at his friend, “What did you tell him?” 

Rin shrugged, “That’s for me to know and you to figure out.” Once Bon had finally caught up to them, they walked through the front doors to the school. 

Now, Rin found many things in his life to be different that happened to revolve around his new leg or the scars on his body. There were pros and cons, and some were both. For example, Rin had thought it would be a good idea to hide Yukio’s pistols in his leg compartment right before leaving for an exorcism. He’d drilled everybody at the same time, and Rin had been trying not to laugh, until one misfired. 

Yukio had _not_ been amused at that little stunt, and Rin would never do it again. The eyes following him while walking through the halls were definitely on his list of cons. 

Whispers and eyes followed him as he walked. Though nobody could see his prosthetic, they could see the scars. The way one eye was milky and no longer his usual blue. And there had likely, or will be, rumors. 

Bon felt Rin stiffen and pulled him closer. Izumo stood close on his other side, glaring at people who were rude enough to point at him. Rin was not at all happy when he realized he was alone in his first class. Thankfully, Izumo was in his second, and the Kyoto trio were in his third and so forth. 

Rin glanced at the door warily before pecking Bon on the lips and walking in. Etsu followed close by his side with a purple PTSD service dog vest (yes, that’s a thing). All eyes turned to him, thanks to him being late, as usual. It was good to have something normal. 

The half-demon gulped and slowly backed up, until Etsu bumped her head against Rin’s leg reassuringly. Rin gulped and walked up to the teacher, handing her a note excusing his absence for the past two weeks. 

She took the note skeptically and read it over. She arched an eyebrow at him, probably not liking the lack of explanations to what the “Unfortunate tragic event” consisted of. She sighed, looking at his scarred face, then down at Etsu before nodding, “You may take a seat, Mr. Okumura.” 

Rin immediately sat in an empty seat in the back of the class, trying to pay attention. Etsu sat in the empty seat next to him, resting her head on Rin’s lap. Rin smiled gently and ran his fingers through her fur. 

After Satan had tried to take over the world, practically everyone had a tempaint. If they didn’t, it was almost as lucky as winning the lottery and going to the moon in the same day. Exactly, impossible. 

As the teacher droned on, Rin tried to keep his mind from wandering. He ready tried, but without the constant chatter from his friends, or having fun and laughing, or having something to do in general, it made it almost impossible. 

Rin shut his eyes tight and pressed his hands into his eyes, trying to still his thought. 

The sounds of chalk on the board like a dagger being unsheathed. The whip of air as a new thing was said, or when and hand was raised. Someone water in their bottle sloshed around, _Red Liquor_

Someone was talking to him, was that barking? Etsu, she was barking at him. Loud, too loud, but not loud enough. Shouting muffled by his thoughts. Hands on his shoulders, or were they paws? 

“-kumura! Mr. Okumura, you need to cal-” 

“-appening to him?” 

“-panic attack I gue-” 

Rin cried out and was met with purple eyes. Etsu gently licked his face, like a mother to her young. Rin caught others staring at him, his teacher as standing next to him, “Are you alright, Mr. Okumura?” 

Rin opened and closed his mouth before finally standing abruptly, “I-I’ve got to go.” etsu jumped back up and followed him out of the room. 

Rin didn’t know where he was going, only that he needed to get out of _here_. It was too confining, maybe the courtyard, yeah, that sounded good. Rin found himself collapsing against the cool stone surface of the fountain. Hot tears streamed down his face, he thought he was ready, that he could go back to school. Maybe he was just a fuck up. 

Broken sobs escaped from the broken boy’s throat. Nothing was the same anymore. He couldn’t sleep for more than a few hours, or at all when he was alone. He’d flinch at almost every touch before realising he wasn’t _there_. Not to mention he’d panic at the slip of a word that even slightly remind him. He freaked out because he saw _Shiemi’s blonde hair_ for fuck’s sake. 

Footsteps swished through the grass, jarring Rin from his thoughts. The half-demon looked up through puffy eyes and wet cheeks to see Amiamon. Rin growled, stiffening slightly, “What do you want.” 

The green-haired demon looked down at him before biting his lip, “Brother told me about what that man did. I wasn’t going to talk to you about it, but I saw you run out, and that you were alone,” Rin watched the demon king tilt his head to the side, biting on a lollipop. 

“If you want to fight, I’m not in the mood right now,” Rin growled at the demon king. 

Amaimon plopped down in front of him, still a good ways away from the shaking son of Satan. Etsu stood in front of Rin protectively, “I’m not here to hurt you. I just thought you shouldn’t be alone until your friends come.” 

“Just go away. I have Etsu, I don’t need you!” Rin scoffed, watching the green-haired demon climb to his feet and turn away. He nodded slightly and jumped out of the courtyard without so much as a glance back, “That was strange.” 

_**Understatement of the century.**_

Rin reached forward and pulled Etsu close, feeling comfort in being able to clutch onto someone. Etsu licked his face gently, wiping away the salty tears that had began to make new tracks, “What’s wrong with me?” Rin sobbed into Etsu’s fur as she rested her head on his shoulder. 

_**Nothing, absolutely nothing.**_

“RIN?!” The demon boy jumped at the loud voices echoing down the hall from the door to his left. Rin’s head turned, waiting for the owner of the voice to come into view. Loud voices continued coming down the hall, causing Rin to cringe. 

*** 

When Rin’s first period teacher had walked stiffly into Bon, Shima, and Izumo’s class, he knew there was something wrong. Their teacher paused his lesson and turned to the red-haired woman, “Can I help you Mrs. Patchetki?” 

Mrs. Patchetki nodded and turned to scan the room, “Who here is friends with Okumura Rin?” 

The three exwires traded worried glances before their hands shot up. Bon stood, his brown eyes filled with worry, “Is he okay? What happened?” 

The other students in the class were whispering, twisting lies or making theories as to what happened. He’d been dealing with it all of class, and he was getting really annoyed with it. But, Izumo was the first to snap. 

“Will you all just shut up?! None of what you are saying is true!” 

“How would you know?” A snobby girl said, prodding at the groups patience. 

“Because we were there,” Izumo snapped, “And unless you were at the hospital with us when Rin FLATLINED, THEN SHUT THE FUCK UP!” Izumo ended her rant screaming, glaring daggers at the girl who had shrunk in her seat. 

Mrs. Patchetki cleared her throat and motioned for them to follow her into the hall. The trio marched out of the ow silent room, leaving many stunned people in their wake. Rin’s teacher closed the door before speaking in a rushed tone, “Rin started having a panic attack in my class. His service dog took awhile to knock him out of it, but he was pretty shaken. Before I could stop him, he ran out of the class and I can’t find him. I was hoping you could.” 

Bon nodded immediately. The three began running, looking in all the places they usually hung out or where Rin would hide. So far, they weren’t finding anything and Bon was starting to panic. What if someone had kidnapped him? Was he hurt? Did he get into a fight? God, Rin, please be okay! 

“RIN?!” Bon called frantically, feet pounding against the tiles loudly. There was one more place they needed to check. The bright sunlight filtered through the door as Bon skidded to a stop. 

Shima collided with the doorframe, panting heavily, “You… are too… fast.” 

But Bon wasn’t listening. He saw Rin leaning against the fountain, his side to them. Etsu was clutched in his arms as sobs shook his body. The black Byakko was gently licking away the salty tears. 

“Oh, Rin,” Izumo whispered, pity lacing her tone. 

Ryuji sighed, thankful Rin was there. He stepped forward gently so as not to startle the half-demon, “Babe?” Rin’s head snapped up, eyes filled with fear. Upon realising it was Ryuji, he sighed with relief. 

Bon sat down and pulled Rin close, “You had me worried,” Rin sniffed and hunched his shoulders over, making himself appear smaller. Bon smiled sadly and pulled him closer. Izumo and Shima sat down as well, letting Rin get it out. 

Rin was trying to stop crying. He didn’t want them to see him like this, so weak and pitiful, “I’m f-fine.” 

Bon pulled him close and soothingly ran circles on his back, “Mrs. Patchetki told us what happened. I’m sorry.” 

“We shouldn’t have left you,” Shima said sadly, “One of us should have stayed with you.” 

“It’s stupid,” Rin muttered into Bon’s chest, “I shouldn’t be freaking out any-” 

“No,” Bon and Izumo interrupted at the same time. Izumo sighed and continued, “You have every right to freak out with what happened to you! Don’t think you are worth any less.” 

Rin peaked out from where he’d hidden himself in Bon’s chest. The barest glimpse of a smile crossed his features before it disappeared, “It was so quiet in the class. I just couldn’t stop my thoughts…” 

Rin trailed off, allowing Etsu to wiggle out of his hold and sit beside the group. Ryuji sighed and pulled Rin into his lap, the half-demon’s legs wrapped around his waist along with his arms. Bon hummed thoughtfully before saying, “Maybe you should wear the headphones, it won’t be so silent when she isn’t lecturing.” 

“That’s the thing,” Rin whimpered, “It was the middle _of_ a lecture! The droning, her ranting on, sounded like _he_ was talking.” Bon stiffened, glancing at Shima with something akin to worry flashing across his features, “He’d lecture me,” Rin’s whisper was barely heard by the three friends, but they were able to pick it up, “He’d tell me every way he’d torture me, how he’d cu-cut me ope…” Rin dissolved into sobs, hugging the older monk tightly. 

“Why don’t I come to your class?” Bon questioned lightly, running calloused fingers through blue-black hair. 

Rin nodded vigorously but made no move to get up. Shima and Izumo traded looks, having a silent conversation before climbing to their feet and disappearing into the hall. Bon rocked back and forth, humming gently. He’d noticed that Rin loved the sound and it had become a habit for him to hum when Rin was upset. 

Rin smiled into Bon’s chest at the soft sounds of humming. It was quiet, drifting over Rin’s ears like a cool breeze on summer’s day. Mixing with the rustling of leaves and grass. Or the soft wind swirling into the courtyard. Rin looked up and rested his chin on Bon, waiting for the monk to notice him watching. 

Bon paused and looked down at him, “What?” 

“Can you sing?” Rin asked innocently. 

Bon spluttered and looked away, “Uh… n-no. I can’t.” 

Rin could see the lie blatant on his lover’s face. He glared up at him, waiting for Bon to look down. When the monk did, Rin jutted out his lower lip and made his eyes as wide as possible. Bon shook his head, “No.” 

Rin huffed and pretended to start crying, his lower lip warbling and eyes glistening with tears. Bon jumped at the look, looking miffed as to what upset Rin. Bon nodded slowly, jumping back when Rin jumped up and whooped. 

“What the Hell?” Ryuji muttered, jaw hanging open. 

“Puppy dog eyes. I mastered them when I was little,” Rin was smiling brightly. Etsu was watching with amusement. The son of Satan collapsed next to the monk, resting his head on Bon’s lap and looking up at brown eyes. Glints of amber shimmered when Ryuji ran his fingers through Rin’s hair lovingly. 

“I’ll get you back for that.” Rin stuck his tongue out as he twirled a piece of bi-colored hair in his hand. 

**I must have been through about a million girls I'd love 'em then I'd leave 'em alone I didn't care how much they cried, no sir Their tears left me cold as a stone**

**But then I fooled around and fell in love I fooled around and fell in love, yes I did I fooled around and fell in love I fooled around and fell in love**

**It used to be when I'd see a girl that I liked I'd get out my book and write down her name Ah, but when the, the grass got a little greener over on the other side I'd just tear out that page**

**I fooled around and fell in love I fooled around and fell in love, since I met you baby I fooled around and fell in love I fooled around and fell in love**

**Free, on my own is the way I used to be Ah, but since I met you baby, love's got a hold on me It's got a hold on me now I can't let go of you baby**

**I fooled around and fell in love I fooled around and fell in love, oh yes I did I fooled around, fooled around, fooled around, fooled around, Fooled around, fooled around, fell in love Fooled around, fooled around, fooled around, fooled around, Fooled around, fooled around, fell in love I fooled around, fell in love I fell in love, I fell in love, yes I did**

Rin’s eyes widened at the way Ryuji’s face was so peaceful when he sung. Brown eyes closed, body swaying slightly. The last words pierced Rin’s heart. Rin smiled giddily and pulled Ryuji down, “That was cheesy,” The demon boy whispered into the older’s lips. 

“I know,” Bon smiled, “But you wanted me to sing.” 

“You should do it more often. It’s really pretty,” Rin smiled sweetly. 

Bon flushed bright red and turned his head away, “W-we should get back to class.” 

Rin smirked at the horrible attempt to change the subjects, but smiled nonetheless. The half-demon stood, dusting himself off and smiling bright at Etsu, who was fake gagging dramatically. 

“Well then,” Rin grinned, “I’ll race you!” He shouted over his shoulder as he made to sprint away. Ryuji yelped and scampered after the blue haired boy, keeping the black tuft tail in his line of sight. Yukio and the other exwires had just rounded the corner, trying to check on the two, when they saw both boys chasing after each other. Wide grins stretching across their faces.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm finally finished! Holy shit, this feels amazing! Thank you to all my readers, I love you guys. If you want an extra chapter, epilogue or other, comment that you want one and the idea. If I like your idea, but I don't think it will do good at the end of this, I might make a one-shot out of it. Now that this is finished, I can work on my "Big Book of Oneshots!" Whoop Whoop, I'm getting places.


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